Mega Man: Abyssal Hunter X
by CasualFictionWriter23
Summary: On his mission, X finds a mysterious girl in the subterranean base who in fact is a personification of warship from ancient times. What are Shipgirls? What are Abyssal Fleet? Why has Japan been isolated for a very long time that the world has forgotten them? Character categories may change. Beta by Vandenbz.
1. The Deep Discovery

**Note: This story takes place in an AU where Japan is totally isolated from other countries a century after the era of original Mega Man, thus not knowing the existence of Reploids throughout the world and vice versa. Also, this is my first AU story, so please bear with it if there** **'** **s any inconsistency and help me to correct it. I** **'** **m just your average guy and sometimes I make mistake, okay? Peace out and enjoy reading ;)**

 **Since I** **'** **m not good at all with Japanese, the italicized lines like** _"_ _This_ _"_ **means the character is speaking in another language.**

* * *

In the year of 21XX, humans are living together with machines known as Reploids and Mechaniloids. Reploids, as their names suggest, are the androids with complete free will and thought processes which are almost or maybe on par with humans. Introduced as the next step in advanced robotics, Reploids, unlike normal robots, have the same mental level as humans; they can think, feel, make their own decisions in life and even develop unique personalities.

Created in the form of humanoids, Reploids may be male or female in appearance although technically they are genderless due to their nature as robots. They have human faces, sometimes hair, and possess bulging armor around their forelimbs, upper body, and legs which distinguish them from real humans. However, some of these Reploids are also built to resemble animals with human-like traits for specialized tasks or purposes.

When they were first introduced to the public, people had their doubts about the concept of living with robots possessing free will. However, as time passed, they slowly began to open their hearts and accept them as a part of normal society, in fact some of them even found it convenient and treated Reploids just like other human beings.

Mechaniloids on the other hand are robots which possess an AI with intelligence below that of an average human. They only function as they are programmed or commanded to. They usually come in a gigantic mechanical vehicle or walker form, although some of them may also take a humanoid appearance. Overall, Mechaniloids function more like industrial worker robots used by the humans back in 20XX.

Thanks to these advanced robots, humanity has achieved a new era of better services, safer work environments, new luxuries, and even a new bond between mankind and robot-kind.

However, such great inventions didn't come without the risk of danger…

Sometime later, some Reploids and Mechaniloids suddenly turned against the humans or other Reploids. They chose the criminal way of life and thus they were dubbed Mavericks. Their reasons for acting like this were many: Faulty wiring, unstable AI, some even had specific reasons to go rogue. But perhaps the most dangerous cause of this was one…

The Maverick virus…

Unlike the other causes stated before, the Maverick virus acted by taking over the Reploid's programming and rewriting their code, similar to how a computer virus infects computer hardware. The most notable sign of this virus was how said Reploid victim would suddenly become aggressive, go berserk, or worse having a new mindset of robot-kind superiority over humans which could spiral into a massive robot rebellion.

It is unknown as to what caused the appearance of this malware in the first place and so far an antivirus has still yet to be found, but many deem this virus to be the most dangerous threat as it affected both Reploids and Mechaniloids, which due to their massive size made them even more dangerous. When the first Maverick incident occurred, one human died and there were many other injured victims, both humans and Reploids…

To counteract this kind of criminal behavior, an organization called the Maverick Hunters was formed to protect the innocent citizenry. Thanks to the efforts of these Hunters, the number of Maverick cases was reduced and citizens could breathe in relief again.

This is the story of a Maverick Hunter as well as the predecessor of the entire Reploid race whose name is…

Mega Man X.

...

 _ **-Chapter 1: The Deep Discovery-**_

 _Somewhere in the midst of the ocean_

Deep within the sea's coral reef area, a marine ecosystem which consisted of algae, and coral, fish and many other sea creatures could be seen swimming around. With the addition of the sunlight coming through the water's surface, illuminating the seabed, this place without a doubt was a very popular tourist site.

 ***BWOO-WIP!***

A single beam of light then suddenly pierced the water, scattering a group of fish. When the light slowly faded, a humanoid figure was revealed standing on the seabed in a classic 'Iron Man' landing pose before said figure stood up and opened his eyes, revealing a pair of green irises.

The figure was a male Reploid, a Maverick Hunter whose appearance resembled a young man in his late teens. He was clad in blue armor and a blue helmet with white and yellow details under his dark grey body. However, the most prominent feature was the red upside-down triangle crystal on the helmet's forehead and the protrusions under his elbows and knee guards that glowed like neon lights.

This Maverick Hunter was X; an S-rank Maverick Hunter and the commander of the 17th Elite Unit which had been fighting to protect the innocent from the threat of the Mavericks and other rogue robots.

"This is X, I have landed at the destination. Do you read me, Alia?" The Blue Hunter spoke through his comm unit, placing his hand on the black circular part on his helmet.

" _ **Affirmative X. From what I**_ _ **'**_ _ **ve gathered, there**_ _ **'**_ _ **s a nearby subterranean base which used to be the operating base for the 6**_ _ **th**_ _ **Marine Unit.**_ _ **"**_ came the reply of a female navigator Reploid named Alia, _ **"**_ _ **It has been long decommissioned by HQ since the first Maverick war. However, we**_ _ **'**_ _ **ve received reports from our Intel regarding strange readings that occasionally come from there.**_ _ **"**_

"Alright, I'll try to investigate and see if there's anything suspicious." X replied with a nod.

" _ **Be careful though. The signal is quite unstable past here, thus it**_ _ **'**_ _ **s not safe to teleport unless you surface or find higher ground where the signal is better.**_ _ **"**_ warned Alia, _ **"**_ _ **Good luck on your mission, X.**_ _ **"**_

"Roger that. Beginning the mission." with that, the blue hunter ended the transmission and looked at the area surrounding him. A feeling of nostalgia suddenly came to him as he took a deep breath and sighed, blowing out some bubbles from his mouth.

"I can't believe that I came back here again…" X muttered with a grim expression.

The truth was this area was the territory of the past leader of the 6th Marine Unit, Launch Octopus, who back then was a Special A-class Hunter before a Maverick Hunter Reploid turned Maverick Sigma recruited him as one of his Maverick generals, ultimately leading to his downfall at the hands of X. X never liked him too much even when the octopus-like Maverick was still a Hunter of higher seniority than him as he viewed his killing method as a form of art, even claimed that it made him an artist of assassination.

X shook off that unpleasant memory. There was no need to think about it anymore as it was all in the past now. He then focused back on his mission and looked at the marked destination point in his HUD before setting off.

As X kept running, kicking up sand with each step, the blue hunter noticed that he wasn't alone, now being accompanied by tropical fish in various shapes and colors. There were even sea turtles, manta rays, tuna, and many other sea creatures swimming nearby. He couldn't resist the urge to smile at this. Advancing technologies and buildings in big cities might be fascinating and provide convenient way of life but nothing could beat the beauty of a natural ecosystem like what he was seeing now. It was a shame that nowadays it was very rare to find 100% natural vegetation on surfaces as most of it had either been replaced with artificial materials or cybernetically enhanced.

' _At least it won_ _'_ _t be so quiet here._ _'_ thought X.

But such a peaceful moment didn't last long when a tremor suddenly shook the ground, catching him off guard as he tried to keep his balance. The fish around him also swam away in fear, leaving the Maverick Hunter alone.

When the tremor had finally subsided, X transformed his right arm into its signature X-Buster form, changing his stance into a standby position. His expression shifted into one of a sharp and cautious soldier as he scanned his surroundings. There was nothing in sight, indicating that the enemy could be hiding underground, thus it was possible to be attacked from different angles beneath him.

"Alright you Maverick scum… Where are yo-WHOAH!?" X didn't get a chance to finish his sentence when something suddenly emerged from the ground and almost hit him directly, causing him to lose his footing. Thankfully the water environment kept X floating which prevented him from hitting the ground hard.

X then raised his feet and activated the dash function to propel himself backwards, hoping to get a better look at his assailant. The view was clouded from the dust, however, the Maverick Hunter could at least identify that his opponent was a large robot which had a serpent-like shape with a round, segmented body and several blue glowing spots on it.

Seemingly noticing its prey, the Maverick then turned around and dived towards the hunter at high speed. This move gave X enough time to take aim and charge up his buster before…

"EEEEYYYAAAH!" a huge energy blast was fired from the arm cannon following X's battle cry. The charged shot hit the Maverick just as it opened its mouth, thus receiving a fully charged shot as its meal with hot plasma flavor…

"Did I get it?" X wondered, but the answer he soon received was in the form of metal jaws that lunged towards him and caught his buster arm. It was then when X finally got a better look of his opponent which was none other than Utuboros, a sea serpent combat-oriented Mechaniloid.

"Hnnggggrrrgghh!" gritting his teeth as the robotic equivalent of pain hit him; the blue hunter was forced to revert back his seized buster into his arm and transform the other one. As the Utuboros swung its prey in an attempt to rip X's arm off, the latter charged another shot and then fired at his enemy's neck.

 ***BLAM!***

With another full charged shot, the Mechaniloid's neck was destroyed, cutting off the head from its body. This caused the jaw to drop open and free X's right arm albeit with minor damage as seen from the bite marks with small bits of electricity flashing. Even though it wasn't that severe, that attack had disabled that arm's Buster function.

"Crud…" X was upset at his own recklessness as he looked at his damaged right arm, but he immediately brushed it off and continued sprinting. He still had a mission to accomplish and besides, he still had his left buster.

Later then, the blue hunter finally reached his destination in the deeper zone where everything was darker thanks to less sunlight, save for one structure with several security lights stationed around. X immediately crouched down behind a large rock and peeked out a bit to analyze the situation. Right before him was a fortified building guarded by several Maverick Reploids armed with guns and launchers adapted for underwater combat. Said building had a dome-like structure with eight towers surrounding it, channeling some kind of energy to it which X could deduce as some kind of power plant.

"Weird… last time I came here, this base didn't look like this…" wondered X. _'_ _But it_ _'_ _s been almost a century since then_ _…_ _no wonder_ _that things have changed a lot_ _…'_

But the question he had on his mind now was… how could he infiltrate the facility with all those guards around?

Placing his hand on his helmet's earpiece, X spoke, "Alia, come in. I have found- huh?"

There was no response from the other side as all he could hear was static.

"Hello? Alia, come in. Do you read me?"

Again there was no response and only static…

"Well great… there's no signal here just as she said." X said in a defeated tone before he looked back at the building, "Looks like I'm on my own again."

He activated the scan function on his helmet to observe and find another entrance to the dome, but the only one he found was the main gate guarded by the Mavericks and he couldn't find any alternative routes to sneak in. The building wall was also made from very dense material which was even denser than steel, enough to shrug off a fully charged X-Buster, thus it was impossible to just break in from the rear. It seemed this place was constructed with the word 'impenetrable' in mind.

But they forgot one thing…

X then transformed his left arm and fired his buster at one of the towers. With a loud ***BLAM!*** the power plant's tower exploded. The guards' attention was immediately seized and they scrambled to check it, which gave the Maverick Hunter enough time to emerge from cover and sprint towards the main gate.

...

 _Moments later_ _…_

After passing through the airlock, X found himself inside the dome, hiding behind a stack of crates. The surrounding area turned out to be a smuggling facility for weapons and battle gear. Numerous metallic crates with the warning sign 'DANGER!' were organized like they were ready to be shipped somewhere, nearby were two lines of Cannon Driver and Gun Volt Combat Mechaniloids.

"Figured as much that this place is just one of 'those'…" muttered X. It was then that he heard the sound of another metal gate open, revealing a Maverick who strangely had a hammerhead shark look similar to Metal Shark Prayer; a Maverick X had defeated a long time ago, except he didn't have a shark-like anthropomorphic body. Behind him were two Maverick guards carrying bayonet rifles.

"Hmmm… looks like everything is in order." The shark head said and then turned to the guard on the left, "You! Tell those guys in Ride Armors to move these crates!"

"Sir!" The first guard replied with a salute before he walked back to where they came from.

"And you!" He motioned to the other one, "Bring that human girl from the brig as well."

"Sir!"

' _HUMAN GIRL?! They even kidnapped a human!?_ _'_ X's face turned angry and disgusted by this revelation. To kidnap humans, knowing that they wouldn't stand a chance against Mavericks physically was a most despicable thing, one that he would never forgive!

The hunter shook his head to calm himself before his anger could get the better of him. Right now rescuing the prisoner was his main priority. If he was lucky, he might get more information about what the Mavericks were planning.

X peered around the crates to see that the other guard had walked away into a nearby. After the hammerhead shark Maverick went to where he ordered the first guard earlier, the area now was finally empty.

' _Now!_ _'_ X then closed his eyes and in a flash of light, he switched his armor. The new armor he wore now was black with gold and white highlights and had a ninja theme. His face was also covered by a faceplate that only showed his eyes.

 **[ARMOR SET: SHADOW ARMOR]**

With the Shadow Armor equipped, X followed the guard, unnoticed by the latter. When the guard opened the gate which turned out to be an elevator and walked in, X immediately used his shadow jump ability to hang on to the ceiling, waiting as the elevator descended.

'This thing sure is handy when the time comes…' X thought, looking at the floor number display which showed 'B3' before the elevator stopped moving.

As the guard walked out, he glimpsed a shadowy figure jump down from behind out of the corner of his eye.

"Huh? What the-!?"

But he never got a chance to process what happened as a yellow energy blade suddenly came down and cut his body in half. As the two halves of the guard dropped down on the floor between the elevator doors, X stowed away his Zetsabre* in his back rack.

X walked out into the corridor where he found many cell doors on both sides. Based from the result of his scan, there were 30 prison cells, 15 on each side but there was only one occupied; the 5th cell on his left.

"That must be it!" he exclaimed. In another flash, the Hunter had reverted back into his default form.

But when he opened the cell, he found something that made his pupils shrink and his mouth open wide in shock.

"My god…"

Inside the cell, right before his eyes was a young girl who appeared to be in her mid-teens. She had long silver hair and wore what X recognized from his databanks to be some kind of priestess uniform from the far east, albeit with shortened sleeves and a skirt. She also wore a pair of arm bracers, thigh high boots, and a black chest guard.

However, what made the blue bomber gasp was the condition she currently was in…

The girl was lying in the corner of the cell and looked like she had been beaten up pretty bad. Her clothes were torn all over from top to bottom and her chest guard was also broken, exposing many indecent parts of her white skinned body. Her long hair was messed up and her body was also full of bruises, wounds, and burns. It was almost like the girl had been put through very painful torture.

If X had blood flowing within his body like humans, it would have been boiling hot from the rage he felt. Whichever Maverick did this, he would make sure to turn it into a pile of scrap.

"Those Mavericks… they will pay for this!" He growled, clenching his fists together. The Maverick Hunter approached the girl and crouched down.

"Hey… are you okay?"

Much to his relief, the girl responded to his question by slowly opening her eyes, revealing a pair of yellow irises. However, she was still too exhausted as she could only look at her rescuer with her eyes half open.

"… _W-who_ _'_ _s_ _…_ _there_ _…_ _?_ " She asked in Japanese but her voice was very tired and raspy.

X blinked, slightly surprised. Even though he understood the language thanks to his universal translator, it was rather rare to see someone speak Japanese after so many years.

He then placed a finger on her mouth to keep her from saying anymore.

"Shhh… save your energy for later okay? I'll get you out of here."

Before she knew it, the girl suddenly found herself being picked up and carried bridal style by X, causing her to yelp a bit. The blue bomber carefully walked out from the cell back to the elevator, gently kicking the two halves of the Maverick guard's body out of there.

As the elevator closed, X was about to choose a floor but stopped and looked down at the girl. She seemed both confused and scared of him because X could feel her body trembling in fear. He couldn't blame her reaction though, after what those Mavericks had done to her, she might have developed a traumatic fear towards Reploids in general.

Trying to calm her down, X gave her a warm reassuring smile and then spoke in Japanese.

" _Don_ _'_ _t worry, you will be fine. I promise._ _"_

The silver haired girl was momentarily surprised that her rescuer could also speak Japanese as well but then nodded wordlessly as the blue hunter pressed a button and the elevator began ascending to the ground floor. When it stopped, X crouched down and placed the girl on the floor, resting her shoulders against the wall in the corner. However when he was moved to straighten her left knee…

" _Aahh..!_ _"_ the girl winced in pain, surprising X who then immediately removed his hand and looked at her in concern.

" _Ah, I_ _'_ _m sorry. Is your left knee hurt?_ _"_

" _Yes_ _…"_ she answered. X slowly nodded in return.

" _Okay_ _…_ _take it slow and stay here until I return, okay?_ _"_ X stood up, _"_ _I_ _'_ _ll be back soon._ _"_

The mysterious girl could only watch as the elevator door opened. The last thing she saw was the left hand of the blue bomber transform into the X-Buster before he pressed the emergency stop button on the control panel to keep the elevator from moving and then walked out, leaving her alone. Cold, confused, and scared with her current situation, the girl pulled back her feet, ignoring the pain in her knee before she curled herself into a ball and muttered a name...

" _Zuikaku_ _…"_ She trailed off and then looked up at the metal ceiling of the elevator.

" _It_ _'_ _s_ _…_ _cold_ _…"_

 _..._

 _Hunter Base_ _–_ _Command Center_

Inside the command area of Hunter HQ, a lot of navigator Reploids were busy communicating with their respective Hunters in the field while typing quickly on their terminals. Among these navigators was a female Reploid. She had shoulder length blond hair, blue eyes, and a slim black feminine body frame. The armor she had was pink and white in color and on her head was a transceiver headset. Unlike the rest of them though, she wasn't communicating with her Hunter and instead she was analyzing something on her terminal.

It was then that the communication node on her transceiver flashed.

"Huh? An incoming transmission?" The navigator blinked and then placed her hand on her earpiece.

" **X to Hunter Base** **. Alia, do you hear me?** **"** **spoke** a familiar voice, **"** **I repeat-** **"**

"X?!" Alia exclaimed and then spoke in her usual professional tone, "This is Alia. I read you, X. What's going on and where are you?"

" **I** **'** **m in the communications center of the enemy base, but more importantly can you do an emergency teleport here? I found a human prisoner here and she needs medical treatment immediately.** **"**

"Alright! Retracing the origin of your signal, and…" She trailed off while typing on her keyboard, "Bingo! I've got your position now, X. I can teleport you back here as soon as you're ready!"

" **Thanks! Just wait for a moment, Alia. I** **'** **ll contact you again when I** **'** **m ready. X out.** **"**

With that said, X cut off the transmission, leaving the blond haired navigator alone. Her eyes never left the holo-screen and her fingers were ready to confirm the teleportation command.

...

 _Back with X_

"I'll contact you again when I'm ready. X out." X said before he turned off the communication line and turned around, leaving behind the scattered bodies of Maverick Reploids and Mehaniloids that had been previously manning the comm center in his wake. Each of the victims had a gaping hole in their bodies after getting shot by his X-Buster.

When X had returned to where he had left the girl earlier, she only looked at him until X picked her in a bridal carry again.

The Hunter activated his comm unit again as he carried the girl out to the base's command center.

"This is X. Send in the Hunters from the 13th Ranger Unit to secure this area and tell Lifesaver to prepare a medical bed for one human. I'm returning to the base now."

Blue light began enveloping X's body and the girl in his arms before it slowly turned into a column of light, shadowing their forms into silhouettes. As the silhouettes disappeared in the column, the blue light then disappeared at lightning speed, leaving no traces of the Maverick Hunter and the girl.

Little did the Maverick Hunter know that his fateful meeting with this mysterious girl was just the beginning of a bigger adventure. One that might put his belief and morale to the test…

* * *

 *** This is the Z-Saber X used in X6.**


	2. The Fallen Crane

**Here's the chapter 2. Enjoy ;)**

 **Since the Kantai Collection doesn't have any actual plot aside from the anime version which is just a revised version of WWII, this story will have its own storyline. However I might take some references from the anime e.g. Nagato's soft spot towards cute things like squirrels.**

 **I'll just be honest here, I haven't played the game, either the browser or the Vita since I don't have the account which looks pretty difficult to make one and the console itself. I only watched the anime or manga or a few fanworks aka doujinshis and other fanfictions.**

 **I'm also not very well versed in WWII equipment. So I'll appreciate a lot of you find mistakes and help me to correct them.**

 **Also, for a little sneak peek, Sigma won't be the main villain of this story.**

 **And for the non-account readers/reviewers:**

 **Awesome - Well, ain't I'm bad when it comes to summary? Lol. Well, I gotta say I agree with your thoughts.**

 **Anonymous - Not totally. Foreign Shipgirls and Japan's isolation as well as being the sole target of Abyssal has nothing to do with that.**

 **wagner - Thank you very much, sir.**

 **Guest - Yuri will be kept as minimal as possible since officially there are some Shipgirls that fall into that trope. Well yeah, but Shell Buster is only usable when X is in his Hyper-Mode X-Fire.**

 **Guest#2 - There's always a solution for that, example like when Yamato was towed in anime. This is just an example though.**

* * *

In the late 21st Century, a mysterious fleet of organic creatures appeared from the ocean's depths near the nation of Japan. The Japanese called it the _Shinkaisei-kan,_ otherwise referred to as the Deep Sea Fleet or the Abyssal Fleet. Arriving in large numbers, in various different shapes, and possessing advanced weaponry, the Abyssals launched a brutal campaign upon Japan. Most of its smaller surrounding islands and naval bases fell in a matter of days.

The first attack of the Abyssal Fleet caused the deaths of over a million citizens. Japan's plight was compounded by the fact that the assault rendered contact with the rest of the world impossible, isolating the nation from any form of organized support.

Desperate to survive this war, the JMSDF, with the help of the Oceanic Research Institute, managed to capture a dead Abyssal creature despite heavy losses. This event marked the turning point of Japan's struggle against the Abyssal Fleet.

Dr. Hasebe, a bio-robotic scientist from the Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, was tasked with studying how the Abyssal creature functioned in hopes of reverse-engineering their technology for human use. After a ton of research, trials and failures, he finally found an answer that may bring Japan victory in this bloody war.

The _Kanmusu_ or Shipgirl…

Taking the form of a female humans ranging in age from a young teenager to and adult, the Shipgirls were beings augmented with the spirits and memories of sunken ships from the World War II era in the course of their 'construction'. Despite their human-like appearance, Shipgirls possessed the strength, firepower, and weaponry proportional to their warship counterparts.

Thanks to these Shipgirls under the command of their Admirals, Japan managed to push back the Abyssal forces and to reclaim most of their lost territory.

However, from there another problem then arose…

Despite their nature as living weapons, the Shipgirls still possessed qualities. They were capable of human emotions like being happy, sad, hurt, or angry.

Not everyone, especially the higher officials in the military, viewed the Shipgirls as humans. Some treated the Shipgirls as nothing more than expendable assets, thinking that their artificial creation meant that they didn't deserve basic human rights. Their existence was kept from the public out of fear that the involvement of young women and children in war would be condemned, crippling the war effort.

Even worse, there were reports of naval commanders who had inflicted heinous actions on their Shipgirls, mainly sexual abuse to the point where the Shipgirls lost the will to fight in the form of PTSD. While the culprits were court-martialed for their crimes, that didn't change the fact that the JMSDF was also facing the problems in their own chain of command…

And yet, the war was still far from over…

Over the years, almost a century after Dr. Hasebe passed away, the Abyssals returned in larger numbers, stronger and smarter than ever before. Despite their limited capabilities when it came to speech and strategic thinking, they learned from their previous defeats and planned successful counterattacks against the Shipgirls.

Doubt was cast as to whether the Abyssals would triumph over the land of Japan, or if the Shipgirls could turn back the tide. The origins of the Abyssals were still a mystery as well.

Shipgirls and human rights were still contested, did they deserve them or were they nothing more than pawns meant to die for their nation?

 _ **-Chapter 2: The Fallen Crane-**_

 _Yokosuka Naval Base HQ – Briefing Room_

Seven Shipgirls sat in one of the base's briefing rooms. The first six sat around a square table with a projector on it while the seventh stood beside a white screen. The last Shipgirl was a tall young woman. She had long black hair that went past her shoulders, and red eyes. She wore a black and white sleeveless skimpy shirt with yellow trimming, black fingerless elbow gloves with similar trimming as well and a short white pleated skirt with a black stripe along the brim. A metallic garter belt supported her black and maroon thighhighs. On her head was a set of antenna-like headgear.

This Shipgirl was Nagato, the battleship of her namesake-class and also known as one of the Big 7 warships.

On the left side of the table was a silver haired girl, clad in a shortened white and red miko dress, a muneate chest protector with the kanji letter for 'Su' inscribed in white, a pair of bracers, and knee-length boots. Sitting next to her was a Shipgirl slightly younger than her. She had dirty green hair in twintails and greenish yellow eyes. Like the silver haired girl, she also wore similar clothing

Next to her was a girl who was younger than the first two. She had black hair in a small ponytail, brown eyes, and wore a white and blue sailor uniform with white stripes and a blue skirt.

These Shipgirls were the Shoukaku-class aircraft carriers Shoukaku and her sister Zuikaku, and the Fubuki-class destroyer Fubuki.

The other three Shipgirls sat on the other side of the table. The first was a young woman who had short black hair and red eyes. She wore a modified miko dress with wide detached sleeves, a hair ornament resembling the pagoda mast which was held on the right side of her head with a small braid. But her most distinguished feature was the grumpy expression which seemed to be directed to the one sitting next to her.

The Shipgirl in question was also a young woman who had short brown hair and brown eyes. Like Shoukaku, Zuikaku, and the grumpy girl, she wore a modified miko outfit. Hers was a light brown color, and it came with a brown skirt instead of a hakama. For some reason, she didn't seem bothered by the nasty look she received since her stoic expression didn't change.

The last Shipgirl was also a young girl like Fubuki. She had straight long blonde hair with a hair ribbon on top of her head and green eyes. She wore a black and white sailor uniform with red trim and black skirt.

These Shipgirls were the Fusou-class battleship Yamashiro, the Ise-class aviation battleship Hyuuga, and the Shiratsuyu-class destroyer Yuudachi.

Nagato cleared her throat, bringing everyone's attention to her.

"Since all of you are here. I will make this quick." She then took out a small device and pressed the button, causing the projector to display a map of several small islands.

"As you can see, our recon fleet has located another one of the Abyssal Fleet's bases here." With another button press, one of the islands was marked with a red circle. "The Admiral's orders are to eliminate the enemy forces and retake this island. If the attack succeeds, we might be able to re-establish communications with the other Naval Bases."

The battleship then pressed another button and several boxes appeared, filling the screen with images of malicious and grotesque Abyssal creatures. Some of them resembled pale skinned women with strange features but the rest didn't even look like humans at all.

"The enemy's fleet is composed of one I-Class destroyer, a Wo-Class carrier, a Ho-class light cruiser, and one Ra-Class battleship. However, their exact numbers are unknown, so chances are that they might have reinforcements."

Nagato changed the slide back to the map, this time with blue and red arrows representing allies and enemies.

"Your mission is to split into two groups. The first will lure out the enemy fleet and engage them, while…" She explained as three blue arrows moved towards the Abyssal forces, causing the enemy to approach.

Three blue arrows then emerged from the west side of the map, "…The other battle group will attack from the west to take out the flagship."

The battleship then crossed her arms and looked at all Shipgirls present.

"This mission may be an extended campaign, so refuel and resupply as necessary before the mission starts. Any questions?"

The silence in the room was more than enough to convince the battleship that all of them understood the plan and needed no further explanation. The projection shut down with another command from the remote, leaving the screen empty white.

"Alright then, the briefing is over. You're all dismissed until further notice."

With that said, Nagato pocketed the remote and left the room before she was followed by the others.

...

 _Mess Hall_

The mess hall was one of the areas at an army base where soldiers usually ate their meals and chatted during their free time. However, in this naval base full of Shipgirls, this facility served a different purpose.

Unlike the warship counterpart, a Shipgirl's equivalent of armor, ammo and fuel came not only from consuming materials like fuel, steel, bauxite, and live ammunition, but also from eating normal food like a human. But unlike humans, Shipgirls possessed a greater level of appetite, notably for the bigger-class ships like carriers and battleships which could make the owner of an eatery or small restaurant break out in tears.

Also, instead of a normal mess hall, this area was more like a cafeteria since the atmosphere was more casual and cozy.

At one table, Fubuki and Yuudachi were waiting for their meal or 'ammo and supply' until a Shipgirl carrying a tray full of food approached them. Said Shipgirl was a young woman who appeared to be in her late teens. She possessed purple eyes and long brown hair with a hairclip and a hair ribbon. She wore a purple dress that matched her eye color and a blue skirt under her white Kappōgi, a form cooking wear, and a pair of tabi socks with sandals.

This Shipgirl was Mamiya, the food supply ship and also one of the chefs of the naval base currently stationed there.

"Here you go, Fubuki-chan, Yuudachi-chan. Enjoy your food." She said in a sweet motherly voice as she placed the food trays on the table. Both Fubuki and Yuudachi stared in awe and excitement at their meals which consisted of rice, tempura, miso soup, and egg rolls which had been beautifully arranged on their bowls and plates, but their attention was focused on two bowls of vanilla ice cream topped with various fruits and chocolate syrup.

"Whoaaaa… a-aren't these a little bit too much for us, Mamiya-san?" Fubuki asked the food Shipgirl, looking a little bit nervous.

"It's like we're celebrating something, poi!" added Yuudachi. However unlike Fubuki, she looked like she was ready to dig in anytime according to her awed face that started drooling.

Mamiya giggled a bit. "It's okay Fubuki-chan. I made them special for you since you two are going on a mission, right? You will need a lot of energy before deploying."

"Really? Thank you very much, Mamiya-san!" At her answer, both destroyers then grabbed their chopsticks and prayed, " _Itadakimasu!_ " before eating their food.

Not too far from them, Shoukaku and Zuikaku were sitting at another table. The two were having a meal together which consisted of rice, miso soup, and baked fish. While Shoukaku was eating with manners and poise, her sister on the other hand was digging into her bowl in a rush before it became empty in mere seconds.

"Seconds, please!" Zuikaku said to another chef Shipgirl who was close by. Unlike Mamiya, she appeared to be older and had a womanly appearance. She had medium-length dark blue hair in a ponytail and dark blue eyes. She was clad in a pink kimono top with a navy blue hakama and a tasuki of the same color.

This Shipgirl was Houshou, an aircraft carrier of the Houshou-Class who had retired as frontline Shipgirl due to her combat capabilities being permanently crippled due to battle damage. Now she worked alongside Mamiya as the primary chefs of the naval base.

With her gentle smile, the elder Shipgirl took the empty bowl from Zuikaku and placed a new one on her table.

"Here you go, Zuikaku-chan."

"Thank you, Houshou-san!" The twintail thanked her and dug in quickly, making Houshou giggle a bit before she returned to the kitchen.

"Zuikaku, please eat slowly. You'll choke if you keep eating like that." Shoukaku told her, concerned and worried for her sister.

And as if fate had its own way to tell Zuikaku to stop...

"With poor table manners like that, no wonder people call you a 'Turkey'."

 ***COUGH!***

Zuikaku suddenly choked after hearing that word and punched her chest to dislodge the food in her throat. After breathing in and out from relief, the twin-tailed carrier's face suddenly turned into a scowl as she turned around.

Next to them were two carrier-class Shipgirls, each carrying a tray full of curry rice. The first possessed long brown hair stylized into a left side ponytail, brown eyes, and wore an outfit similar to Shoukaku and Zuikaku only with her skirt being blue. She had a stoic and serious expression which never seemed to leave her face despite the glare she was receiving from Zuikaku. Her companion on the other hand sported long straight brown hair, brown eyes, and was clad in an outfit comparable to her partner's except for how her skirt was red with white thigh-highs. Unlike her compatriot, she had a friendly demeanor which made it much easier to get along with her.

These Shipgirls were Kaga and Akagi, aircraft carriers that were infamous for being the core of the 1st carrier division of the Japanese Navy back during WWII.

"Kaga-san…" Zuikaku said bitterly, clearly not happy to see her. "Why are you here?"

"We just happened to pass by while looking for a table, nothing else." answered Kaga.

Infuriated by her answer, Zuikaku suddenly rose up and pointed her finger at her, "Nothing else my ass! You clearly said that on purpose, didn't you!?"

"I only said that you lacked table manners." Kaga simply replied before she rubbed her temple, "Just what was the Admiral thinking to send out the 5th carrier division girls while clearly there were better options?"

Unable to handle it anymore, the younger carrier finally punched the table in anger, shocking Shoukaku from her outburst.

"Are you mocking us!? You're just jealous because the Admiral didn't choose you and Akagi-san for this mission!"

Zuikaku's loud voice had without a doubt drawn attention from the other Shipgirls eating nearby. However some of them just sighed in exasperation and annoyance before they continued eating as usual like nothing had happened. Most of the girls at the base with the exception of the new recruits already knew that Kaga and Zuikaku were often at each other's throats.

"It's them again… How annoying!"

"I told you it was a bad idea to sit here."

"Ugh, let's find another table, Kitakami-san."

"A proper lady shouldn't fight with each other!"

"Nanodesu..."

Feeling embarrassed from the stares and whispers directed at them, both Akagi and Shoukaku finally took the initiative to stop their arguing comrades.

"Come on, Kaga-san, let's just find a table and eat. The curry will get cold if we don't hurry and I don't like cold food." Akagi suddenly pulled Kaga by her hands and dragged her fast towards the empty table.

"Now-now Zuikaku-chan. Less fight and let's just finish our meal, okay?" Shoukaku also told Zuikaku to sit back. The twin tailed girl could only grunt in response before she looked at her sister and then asked.

"I don't get it Shoukaku-nee. How could you be so lenient after what she just said about us?"

"I'm pretty sure Kaga-san didn't mean it that way, Zuikaku-chan." replied the silver haired girl with a smile, "Maybe she just wanted to encourage us to do our best."

"Really… sometimes you're too kind for your own good, Shoukaku-nee…" Zuikaku replied back with sigh before the two continuing to eat their food.

At the farthest table where everyone rarely sat there, Yamashiro with her gloomy expression was having her plate of dango with another Battleship Shipgirl. This Shipgirl had the similar appearance as Yamashiro except she looked slightly older than her and had long straight black hair and her pagoda accessory was held on the right side of her head. Unlike the former, she had a somewhat sympathetic smile on her face.

She was Fusou, the first of the Fusou-class battleship and also the elder sister of Yamashiro.

"Uuuuu… why out of all battleships, it has to be 'her'?" Yamashiro groaned in disappointment before she slumped, "Such misfortune I have…"

"Now-now Yamashiro-chan, I bet it won't be as bad as you thought." Fusou said as she patted her sister's shoulder, trying to reassure Yamashiro.

"But I want to sortie with you nee-sama." The battleship suddenly hugged her sister and whined in her chest, much to Fusou's embarrassment despite the fact that no one was seeing them, "That Hyuuga-san would only make things harder for me."

"Who will make things harder for you?" asked a familiar voice which made Yamashiro pull herself from her sister's lap and turned to see the last person she'd want to see: Hyuuga.

"ARGH! What are you doing here?!" She exclaimed, pointing her finger accusingly at the aviation battleship.

Hyuuga who was confused a bit by Yamashiro's reaction then took a seat beside Yamashiro, "I just think it would be the best if I try to get to know my teammate better."

"Who says that you're my teammate!?" she shouted at her.

"The Admiral assigned us in the same fleet for this mission so didn't that make us teammates already?"

Frustrated by her answer and the fact that Hyuuga still didn't get the idea that Yamashiro just didn't like her, the latter then stood and left the table in irritation.

"That's it! I'm done here!"

The brown haired battleship blinked, confused at her attitude before turning to Fusou.

"Did I say something wrong?"

With an apologetic look, Fusou bowed then answered, "Please forgive her, Hyuuga-san. My sister is just too nervous since this is her first time to sortie out without me. But I'm pretty sure she's actually very happy to have you as her teammate."

"Oh."

...

 _Later then…_

Shoukaku and Zuikaku floated above the water surrounded by smokes and flames from the bodies of destroyed Abyssals. The battle was pretty fierce as none of them were expecting the larger number of destroyers than what they had expected. While most destroyers were equivalent to grunts, their massive number and size still posed serious threat in the hands of amateurs.

Things became worse when the Abyssals cruisers, carriers, and battleships joined the battle, but luckily the operation was a success in the end. Thus, it was another victory for humans and Shipgirl over this water territory.

Fubuki and Yuudachi were slightly damaged, but aside from that they were just fine. Sadly, same thing couldn't be said so to their clothes which were pretty messed up from gotten hit by Abyssal's cannons.

"My clothes are ruined, poi…" the blonde destroyer said disappointedly, looking down at her tattered uniform.

Fubuki put her hands on Yuudachi's shoulder, "Now-now, Yuudachi-chan. At least we're still alright and we did accomplish the mission."

Yamashiro and Hyuuga were moderately damaged due of having constant bickering and arguments in the middle of a battle that they didn't synchronize with each other. Some parts of their riggings, mainly their cannons and aircraft facilities were disabled from gotten hit by Abyssal's bombers and cannons, however this was mostly caused by the former who didn't want to take orders from the latter.

"Uurrggh…! This is why I don't want to be paired up with you! You're always bossy, thinking you could order me around! Fusou nee-sama wouldn't do that if I was paired with her!" grumbled Yamashiro.

Hyuuga wasn't offended at all by her remarks but she was still confused as hell why she was the one to be blamed here. "But all I did was telling you to evade the incoming shots. You were the one who didn't want to listen."

For Shoukaku and Zuikaku, the former was moderately damaged while the latter only suffered minor damages just like the destroyers. Most of time it was because Shoukaku acted as the shield for the attacks meant for her sister who didn't notice it coming. It was rather reckless for her considering she could get critically damaged or worse sunk by doing that, but Shoukaku was a tough Shipgirl and this was nothing compared to seeing her little sister got damaged instead.

"We did Shoukaku-nee! We did it!" The twin tail carrier said in joy and then pumped up her fist, "Now this will show that Kaga-san not to look down the 5th carrier division anymore!"

Shoukaku could only giggle at her sister despite her now damaged appearance, "I'm pretty sure she will, Zuikaku."

Zuikaku turned to where the other Shipgirls were already going back and then looked back at her sister over her shoulder, "Come on, Shoukaku-nee. Let's head back to the base."

With another nod, the elder carrier replied, "Yeah…"

The carrier sisters then followed the rest of the fleet, ready to go home to bring good news to their admiral. The sea slowly turned peaceful again as the sky was clear from the dark clouds caused by the Abyssal's presence, revealing the beautiful sunshine. The dead bodies of the Abyssals slowly sunk back into the iron bottom abyss where they came from...

And then, it happened…

 ***SPLOSH!***

A heavy explosion suddenly shook the water, knocking Zuikaku forward while soaking her clothes wet as well from the heavy splash. Fubuki and the others who also felt it turned around, shocked.

Zuikaku's eyes shrunk in utmost horror, knowing the explosion happened right behind her where Shoukaku was. Immediately, she turned around, hoping that her sister was okay…

"S-Shoukaku-nee!"

But alas, what she found were only a bow and a quiver with leftover arrows scattered around the water in place where her sister was…

"SHOUKAKU-NEEEEEEEEEE!"

.

.

.

 _Hunter Base – Sick Bay Corridor Area_

X was sitting on the metal bench with head rested on his clasped hands. The worried look on his face never left him since he and a team of Lifesaver units placed that girl on the bed and brought her inside the special treatment room equivalent of hospital's ICU. But like the real hospital, only medical staffs or in this case Reploids and patients who were only allowed to enter which left X to wait alone outside and brought him into his current situation.

He couldn't forget that girl's helpless expression when she was attached with an oxygen mask. She even reached out her hands at X while lying there as if she wanted to say not to leave her alone before the Lifesavers took her in. Maybe X had just known her for minutes, but it made him feel guilty inside that he couldn't be there at least to give support...

Seconds passed which seemed like an eternity for the blue hunter until he heard a familiar voice which brought him out from his distressed mind.

"Yo X." He looked up to see a fellow hunter who offered him the drink. The hunter was a male Reploid, slightly taller than X. He was in clad of red and white armor over his dark grey body and wore a helmet whose design had sharp, jagged sides and blue upside-down triangle crystal on the forehead as opposed to X's round helmet. But the most distinguished feature of him was his long blonde hair that came down under his helmet which was almost as long as his height.

"Zero…" X muttered at him.

"Keep making that face won't make things any better you know." The hunter named Zero then sat beside him, placing the E-Tank between them before he opened his first. "Besides, Lifesavers are the best medical Reploids we have here. I'm not familiar with human physics, but I bet 10 Zennies that girl will make it through."

As the red hunter drank his can, X's expression became relieved a bit before he took the other can and nodded.

"I guess you're right, sometimes I forgot how many times they've saved humans and Reploids who were on verge of death..." The blue hunter then took a sip of his E-Tank and let out a sigh, "Maybe I just overthink this too much."

"Damn right, you are. You worry more than the rest of Reploid race combined."

Both hunters chuckled in amusement as they had their drinks together. After a moment and few sips, X decided to ask something to Zero.

"Say Zero. Where's Axl? I haven't seen him around lately."

The blonde haired hunter sighed then answered, "Still hasn't given up yet playing his little 'who am I' case." He then took the last sip of his E-Tank, "Seriously, when will that kid stop? Sometimes I feel like babysitting rather than mentoring him."

X chuckled a bit, "I just hope he won't get himself into trouble."

Zero squeezed the empty can flat and threw it into the nearby trash can without even looking, earning the red hunter a whistle from the impressed blue bomber.

"Well, I better go out patrolling now. Hope that girl would wake up soon." The blond haired hunter then stood and left to the door, waving his hand a goodbye, "Later X."

As Zero walked away, X suddenly got an idea to tease him a bit. With a mischievous smirk, the blue bomber raised his voice a bit.

"Hey! Don't forget to write your 'reports' when you're done, Zero."

Zero suddenly flinched upon hearing that cursed word much to X's amusement who snickered at his reaction before continued walking. Even though he didn't see his face from behind, X could already tell that Zero was wearing his annoyed smile that said 'damn you, X'. If anything that Zero had difficulty to accomplish, then the answer was paperwork. Right, the S-Class hunter who spent most of his time fighting Mavericks and doing paperwork behind work desk were like water and oil that wouldn't mix.

Some A-Class hunters from different divisions even knew that Zero often took long term missions so he could skip them, however they knew it better not to spread it around the HQ if they still valued their lives from Zero's Special S-Class Training…

As Zero's walking figure finally left the corridor, leaving X alone again, the door slid open, getting his attention and revealed a medical Reploid in white and green armor carrying a tablet in his right hand.

"Lifesaver." X said and stood up to approach the medic then asked, "How is that girl? Is she okay?"

Lifesaver with a calm expression took a deep breath and then answered…

"X… before I answer that, there's something that I want to know first."

X blinked his eyes, confused. "What is it?"

Both Reploids looked at each other before Lifesaver asked him an unexpected question.

"That girl you brought here… What is she?"

* * *

 **Sorry if this is too short. This chapter is basically an introduction for those who don't know about what Kantai Collection is and tells what happened before X found Shoukaku. Who or what sank Shoukaku would be explained in later chapter, but for now I'll leave it to your imagination.**

 **Yamashiro's personality is derived from the fanworks and doujins where she's often described not only as a siscon to Fusou but also grumpy and harbors ill-feeling towards Hyuuga and Ise for some reason. I sincerely apologize for her fans if you find her OOC here.**

 **Dr. Hasebe is also a character from the Kancolle fanworks: The 0423 Incident, and Proviedence by Soregasiya. In the story, he was a scientist who studied a dead Destroyer Abyssal and reverse engineered its origin to create Shipgirls and Fairies.**

 **And yeah, for a bit of humor, I gave Zero a slight dorkly side where he's not good at paperworks.**

 **R &R and peace out.**


	3. Not Human

**The third chapter is finally here! Sorry for you who have wait for long time. First off, I want to apologize for my less and less story update. While I have my own ideas to pour** **, I didn't make this with my own skill. There are Vandenbz who has been helping me so far to proofread my works and** **F-14 Tomcat Lover who helped me writing this chapter. They have their own pace in doing things.**

 **And now to reply the non-account reviewers:**

 **J - Really? But I only found sfw doujin of the ar** **tist so far or maybe my search settings got filtered on. Thanks for your suggestions.**

 **Guest - Is she okay or not? Well, you will get your answer here.**

 **ManOfAction - That's one weird shipping name I ever heard, pal. Heh-heh. But I agree, X really needs a woman's touch after all those stress he build for having to kill his own kind.**

 **Guest#2 - Technically speaking yes, but X isn't too depended on those and he doesn't want to become a killing machine. He only destroys those who deserve to be. Now that's actually an original idea I could put into consideration.**

 **Guest#3 - Thanks. As for your ship waifu, she can be either: not appear yet, alive, or sunk. Of course I'm**

 **Guest#4 - I prefer to keep her as she is, sorry dude.**

 **atom king - Thanks for your support. Probably but not now. Hmm... I honestly don't know, but if X can, then it's mostly projectile cannons, torpedoes, or any warship related weapon which I think won't be too useful.**

 **LL - Thank you for the response.**

 **Guest #5 - Yeeeaahhh... I think I played it a bit dirtier this time. I prefer myself a bit nutty, heh heh.**

 **Guest #6 - Hahaha, let's hope he will survive in that.**

 **Anonymous - Thank you.**

 **Guest #7 - If only X knows the concept of opposites attract... or does he?**

 **Read and enjoy :)**

* * *

 ** _\- Chapter 3: Not Human -_**

 _Hunter Base – Medical Bay_

"That girl you brought here… What is she?"

"Wha…" X trailed off, his expression clearly disbelieving of what the medical Reploid had just said.

Giving a slightly disapproving look, the Blue Hunter responded. "What do you mean by 'what' is she!? Isn't that obvious that she's a human?!"

Somehow, Lifesaver had expected this kind of reaction from X. If anything, he was pretty touchy when it came to humans. But the doctor also knew who his patient was when he was doing his job, and this one was neither human nor a Reploid.

With a small sigh, Lifesaver handed X his tablet. "Here, take a look at this. That's the result of her physical examination."

X took the tablet and gently swiped his finger, browsing it thoroughly from top to bottom. His expression slowly turned into shock as he kept reading the report.

"…What in the world…?" He trailed off in disbelief, earning him a nod from Lifesaver.

"Surprised? Me too when I saw it first." said the doctor.

"We did a full scan of her body and the result? I can only guess how this is possible. While her flesh and organs are organic, the body tissues and bones possess some nano-materials that strangely resemble minerals including: Steel, iron, aluminium, and many others. The blood sample test also showed that her blood is mostly composed of a substance similar to an industrial fuel."

Whether X actually listened to his explanation or not as he was too busy reading the report again, Lifesaver addressed him again.

"X, do you want to know what caused the wounds and burns on her body?"

At this question, the Blue Bomber stopped reading and raised his head to face Lifesaver with a questioning look.

"What was it?"

The doctor glanced back at the door where the mysterious girl was unconscious, "After we examined her wounds, it looks like she was shot with something similar to an explosive bullet whose caliber is comparable to a cannon, several times if I may add. I don't know what specific kind of weapon did this to her, but if she was really a 'human' then I doubt her body would be still intact from the first shot. That means she also possesses an extraordinary level of endurance and strength beyond humans. That's just my hypothesis though…"

The medical Reploid shook his head with a grim look after he finished his explanation. "I won't even dare to imagine the state she was in when she had to endure all of that... I'm not a psychiatrist but I think she might be suffering from PTSD..."

X cringed slightly, recalling when the girl was trembling in fear in his hands but he shook it off. He handed back the tablet to Lifesaver with a firm expression, the conversation was getting off-track anyway…

"We can deal with who she is later. Human or not, it doesn't matter to me, Lifesaver." X told the medic, "Just tell me what her condition is now."

The doctor sighed again, feeling a bit unappreciated that his explanation was all for nothing. But then again it wasn't like he expected X to fully understand it; he just wanted to let him know that the girl wasn't a normal human.

"She's sleeping now after we tried giving her sedatives. It looks like her nervous system is almost the same as a human's since drugs have an effect which is a good thing. Other than that she's fine." answered Lifesaver. "However, until we can ensure that she's stable enough, I'm afraid that I can't allow you to see her, X."

While it was a bit disappointing that X couldn't see her in person, the news that she was okay was more than relieving to him. Human or whatever she was, that girl was still a living person just as any other human or Reploid.

"Thank goodness…" X sighed in relief.

Lifesaver nodded, "I must get back. I'll inform you again if we make any progress with her, so until then why don't you help yourself by getting that right arm of yours repaired?"

"I will, thanks for everything Lifesaver." The hunter bowed gratefully but the doctor shook his head again.

"I'm just doing my job as a doctor, X. Be it humans, Reploids or… this girl, anyone who needs medical attention and treatment here is my patient."

With a smile, the blue Hunter bid the medic goodbye and walked off down the corridor while the medical Reploid went back inside the ward. Like any other hospital, the ward area was filled with a mix of highly advanced medical tools and gears ranging from hover beds, cryogenic chambers, recovery capsules, and MRI scanners. Holographic screens could be seen floating around each hover bed to monitor the current patient's condition.

The girl was sleeping with two Lifesavers keeping an eye on her, with the number 2 and 3 on their right shoulder armor respectively. Unlike when X found her, she currently wore a more decent standard hospital gown. While most her bruises and scars were still there, they weren't as bad as before thanks to the quick patch done by the Lifesavers. An oxygen mask was still attached on her face and on her left sleeve, an IV needle was transfusing dark brown liquid through the small hose connected all the way up to a familiar blue metal can with a capital 'E' letter hanged on a metal pole; otherwise referred to as an E-Tank.

Lifesaver approached the two Lifesavers and noticed the E-Tank which made him raise his (unseen) eyebrow, confused.

"Why was she given an E-Tank?"

"Ah, her body was cold due to suffering quite a bit of blood loss, so we were trying to find a compatible blood bag for her." answered the Lifesaver #2 who then shook his head, "But her blood type was too different from humans because her blood wasn't really human blood after all…"

"But when we found out the composition of her blood which is rather similar to fuel, we conducted another quick test when you were outside." Lifesaver #3 added and looked at the E-Tank, "It appears that the E-Tank shares the same substances that can be used as an alternative for her blood."

Lifesaver #2 lifted up a holo screen which displayed the girl's condition in thermal imaging, "However since we still don't have any idea on how much her body can tolerate the flow from an E-Tank, I'd say we shouldn't give her too much to avoid any negative side effects, at least until her body temperature is normal and her vital signs are stable again."

"I see." Lifesaver #1 nodded in understanding, "Thanks for switching with me, you two can continue your other tasks."

The two Lifesavers nodded back in return before they went back to their posts. After they were out of sight, Lifesaver walked over to his terminal and put his tablet on his work desk before starting to type on the keyboard. A holo-screen quickly appeared, showing the research report that the two Lifesavers did earlier.

"Hmm…" the doctor cupped his chin before glancing at the bedridden girl and then activating the comm. unit integrated into the side of his helmet. An AI voice promptly asked him where to connect the line.

"Patch me through to Commander Signas, now."

...

 _Hunter Base_ _–_ _R &D Lab_

The central laboratory was one of the main facilities in Hunter Base where the mechanics and engineers developed parts, mainly chips with special abilities or weapons to help the Hunters on their missions. However, despite the name, the area also provided VR arenas for field testing, maintenance equipment, and an emergency teleport chamber for the Hunters who got damaged upon returning from their missions.

With the recent discovery of Force Metal; a mineral of extraterrestrial origin that strangely possessed the power to boost the strength of Reploids, the area was bustling with various researcher Reploids from overseas who had come to study it in the hopes of benefiting humans and Reploids alike.

Upon logging into one of the maintenance terminals, X got busy tinkering with his right arm in X-Buster mode. A circuit board filled with a complex array of chips, cables, and other components from his exposed cannon arm was being fixed very carefully using precision tools like a soldering iron to melt the broken parts so they could be removed easily.

With metal tweezers, X pulled out a burnt chip, wincing a bit, and placed it on a small metal tray before he inserted a new one and then closed the buster's hatch. As the recalibration diagnostics ran, his HUD displayed a diagram of the X-Buster with a progress bar that filled steadily from 0 to 100%.

 ** _"_** ** _CALIBRATION COMPLETE"_**

"Hmmm…" murmured the Blue Bomber before he began testing his Buster by flexing his arm first and then performing a mock Buster charge-up. A smile of satisfaction grew on his face as he cancelled the charge and reverted back the X-Buster into his hand.

"Good thing my old Buster chip is compatible with this one." He said, referring to his old armor. The previous armor he'd had was currently stored in his quarters as a spare until he really needed it. While it was still functional, most of its features needed new parts due to the passage of time. Not that he could blame it though, that thing was almost 2 centuries old so it was understandable that it didn't work properly anymore despite of its regular maintenance.

Besides he also found his new armor to be more convenient, especially since it was designed as the prototype for Force Metal use and he could occasionally switch his X-Buster types by simply swapping his Buster chip which saved him a lot of time instead of having to switch the entire armor.

The blue Hunter stood and cleaned up the tools he used before leaving the terminal, but then his attention turned to a certain Reploid or more precisely the object he was carrying in his hand cart. The Reploid was a young man, slightly shorter than X in height and had green and beige armor over his beige body frame. A pair of what appeared to be energy tanks for whatever their purposes were could be seen attached on his back and he wore a Russian hat-like helmet along with a pair of red goggles.

The Reploid was named Douglas, an engineer/mechanic whose job was maintaining the equipment and sometimes inventing new parts or ability chips for the Hunters.

But X's main focus wasn't the mechanic, but rather the familiar blue armor set inside the capsule Douglas was carrying which was none other than his first one.

"Douglas." He called, making Douglas jump in surprise and he turned around. "Is that my armor you have there?"

"Oh X! T-this, w-well… aah… uhm…" The mechanic stammered, trying to find a good answer. But the sharp interrogating gaze of the Blue Bomber only made him even more nervous as X just stood there with his arms crossed, patiently waiting for an answer.

"Uh-hmm..?"

Feeling that he had been caught in the act; Douglas sighed in embarrassment before apologizing.

"So sorry about this, X... I should have asked you first." He said, scratching his helmet. "I just want to upgrade your armor."

Now that wasn't an answer that X expected from him. Why did Douglas want to upgrade his old armor when every attempt X did to make it fully functional again had been futile? But still whatever his intention was, that didn't excuse him from just taking away his armor without his consent.

"Not that I'm not grateful for what you're trying to do, but why?" he asked again.

"I couldn't help it. It makes me sad seeing this armor end up like a mannequin on display." The mechanic shook his head before looking at the armor with a melancholic look and shifting back to X, "So I thought I could tweak it and give new functions like better compatibility for Force Metal use, improved gravity stabilizers, optimized power routing, and…"

"Okay-okay, I get it. And I really appreciate it, Douglas." X cut him off, raising both his hands to keep Douglas from going on. "Just make sure to tell me first next time you want to do something with my equipment, okay?"

"Yessir! I won't do it again, Commander!" Douglas replied with a cocky salute, causing both of them to chuckle in amusement before waving goodbye and wishing good luck to each other. Moments later, X walked out of his quarters with a file in his right hand.

...

 _Later on_ _: Commander_ _'_ _s Office_

The commander's office, as its name stated and declared its function, was a spacious room filled with technologically advanced yet grand looking furniture which included a coffee table and couches for guests with a desk for said commander. The evening view of Arcadia City from the background window added to the room's aesthetic value.

Inside the room, X stood in front of his commander who was at his desk and reading X's report. The commander was a tall Reploid about a head taller than X or Zero. His armor was a very bulky dark blue and white with yellow, red, and white trim that denoted his rank as an officer with an appropriate helmet. He also had a very calm yet serious expression on his face like Lifesaver.

This Reploid, Signas, held the highest authority among the leader of Maverick Hunters.

"Hmmm… weapons smuggling huh? That means we're dealing with a very organized Maverick group then…" Signas said, cupping his chin in thought before looking at X, "Do you have any idea who they might be, X?"

X shook his head. "I'm afraid not, Commander. The symbols on the weapon crates didn't reveal much either since they were leftover from the Sigma Rebellions. I'm not entirely sure. However, the 13th Ranger squad has secured the area and captured some Mavericks there. If we bring them in for interrogation, maybe we can get to the bottom of this."

"I hope so. The sooner we know what their intentions are, the sooner this will be over." The commander handed back the file to X and clasped his hands. "As for the girl you rescued there, what is her condition now?"

"Lifesaver told me she was fine, although she still needs rest, sir. He also discovered something else about her." The Blue Hunter answered, which in return earned him an intrigued look from Signas.

"And what is that?"

Taking a deep breath, X explained. "While she has a very humane appearance, some of her internal structure is composed of metals and materials that shouldn't be present in a human body. He also told me that she might possess beyond human level strength and endurance as evidenced from how she survived quite the traumatic ordeal. However, he couldn't confirm that yet."

For a moment, Signas closed his eyes, lowered his head and crossed his arms, trying to comprehend what X had just said. It was very hard to believe, but he knew that X would not lie about such things. Furthermore, if Lifesaver really told X that, then chances were very slim that he was joking around…

But still he had to make sure of it.

"That's... very unexpected." He pondered, placing his finger under his chin in deep thought before he shifted his gaze to X and rested his chin on his hands. "X, do you have any further proof? I'd like to see it myself."

To answer his request, X reached for the back on his helmet and pulled out a data drive before handing it over to Signas.

"Here. It's the copy of the report that Lifesaver showed me, Commander."

Signas inserted the drive into a slot on his desk. A holo-screen showing the report appeared in front of Signas. Even though the elder Reploid kept his expression neutral as he read the report, inside he was as shocked as X. According to the report, aside from what X had already disclosed, there were no signs of alteration found within her body which brought about the question of how her flesh, blood, and bones contained elements which were so similar to materials used to produce armored vessels from so long ago. Overall, this girl almost defied everything he knew about humans.

It was almost like this mysterious girl was a new type of human...

But perhaps what concerned him most was the allegation as to whether she truly possessed superhuman powers or not…

Once he was finished, Signas took a few moments to study the veteran Hunter, and thinking back to how he changed civilization so much by simply existing, this new discovery would prove to be even more groundbreaking.

"Taking into account what little we already knew," Signas began, "Regulations state that we have to isolate and observe her in a secure location for safety's sake."

Holding up a hand to forestall any argument from X, Signas continued, "On the other hand, she is an unknown in which we cannot confirm if she is human or not, and possesses abilities far greater than the average human. Given that certain powers will be interested in her, and any potential research breakthroughs they can make, we need to reconsider our position, especially if other reports that have been handed to us are accurate."

"Other reports, sir?" X inquired, a bit surprised.

"An area of the Northern Pacific has been seeing unusual patterns and the Hunter HQ in the North American Region recently reported detecting sounds of battle on a scale not previously seen in quite some time," Signas informed the origin of all Reploids, "It has been classified to the highest levels and we have been considering dispatching covert investigations. The underwater base where you found our mystery guest happens to be close enough to a battle site from a short while back. As near as we can tell, at least. One of the reasons you were sent there, was not only to check on the base, but also find any evidence regarding the strange happenstances. Our mystery guest may yet yield those clues."

X slowly nodded, "I see. I thought it was strange that I was sent alone. Normally I would have brought some support."

Signas concurred, "Correct. While I should, by regulations, isolate her, I feel I would have to agree with the prognosis that she might be traumatized from her experiences. Nevertheless, I believe we should proceed with caution, since we are dealing with a potential life form we've never seen before. Needless to say, if her traits can be copied, it would be as revolutionizing as it was when you were first discovered and Reploids were created from your base template."

X winced at that as Signas continued, "She'll need a full time guardian and a place that feels comfortable once she's fully recovered. I'll arrange that later... We can't keep her here forever and she's not a registered citizen here..."

Signas turned off the holo-screen and returned the data drive to X, "And her guardian should be someone she already knows, so I'll entrust you with that position and you'll have a small team of both humans and Reploids to support you. You may not always see them, but somehow no one expects them to successfully hide themselves from you."

"Ah!" X realized where this was going, "You already received a report then."

"Of course, Lifesaver already reported it to me as soon as he could. I just wanted to hear it directly from you." the Hunter Commander smirked a little, "I believe that you'll do fine, plus you are due some leave anyway. It's not like we'll fall apart without you."

X closed his mouth before he could complain about not needing any time off. While it felt like he was neglecting his duty as a Maverick Hunter, Signas' words were true. There was still Zero and a number of recently promoted S-Class Hunters, not to mention those still in training.

Signas cleared his throat, catching X's attention. "So, will you accept my request or should I ask another Hunter for this task, X?"

Without any further hesitation, the Blue Bomber replied, "I'll take it, Commander."

"Then I guess we're done here. Thanks for reporting in, you may leave now." Signas concluded.

"I'll be on my way, Commander Signas, and thank you for everything." With a parting salute, X turned around and walked out of the room.

Now alone again, Signas stood up from his armchair and turned around towards the window behind it, gazing at the sunset on the horizon which shone upon the grand view of Arcadia City. Despite the beauty of the view, the Reploid didn't actually enjoy it as his mind was somewhere else.

It concerned him that every time... when something new was discovered, it was just the beginning incredible... and often end causing no end of trouble. Copy Chips and Force Metals had brought about the birth of the new generation Reploids, a chain of events that ended in the Jacob Incident... the rise of a rebel army that wanted to get their hands on the most powerful Force Metal ever...

And now this mysterious girl who possessed traits unnatural for a human...

"I wonder if this is a sign of something that we'll have to face again in the future..." muttered the Reploid before he took a long breath and let out an exasperated sigh. His gaze focused on the setting sun at the horizon.

"Dear creator... what would you say if you were still here with us?"

...

 _Later that night_

Time passed and eventually the night came. While most stores and malls had closed down, the Maverick Hunter HQ was still bustling with activity. In fact some of the Hunters could be seen patrolling around the city on their Ride Chasers, a vehicle resembling a futuristic bike with no tires that featured a spinning disc under its back engine that caused it to hover above ground level. Not only fast and armed with built-in weapons, the Ride Chaser could function over water in its default form or perform an air patrol by modifying its rear engine.

Among these night patrol squads were X and Zero riding their customized Ride Chasers whose paint jobs matched their armors. Custom modifications left X's Ride Chaser capable of charging up its main cannon in a manner similar to his X-Buster worked while Zero's Ride Chaser could generate an energy blade from its nose which could also be launched as a crescent-shaped energy shot.

Wandering around the city blocks and highways back and forth, Zero finally decided to break the ice and kill his boredom.

"So, X… how's that girl doing? Is she any better now?"

"Oh." X glanced at Zero before answering, "Yeah, I guess you could say that…"

The uncertainty in his tone wasn't missed by the Red Hunter, "You don't sound too convinced. Did something happen, X?"

"How should I put this?" X scratched his cheek for a moment. "Lifesaver also discovered that the girl was different from any other human."

"How different? Aren't humans all the same?"

"That's where she's different, Zero." X told him, "You see…"

Zero doubted X's ensuing story at first, it sounded like something from a fantasy tale. But judging from his tone and expression alone, Zero could tell it was the real deal. Even he'd had a conversation with the Hunter Commander regarding what they should do with the girl once she had recovered.

"That's a lot to take in, I must say, X..." Zero replied, still a bit unsure on what to say before he focused his gaze back on the road. "Don't get me wrong, X. I know we have seen a lot crazy things in our missions. Sigma was the prime example of that. But to think a girl like her-"

The Red Hunter was cut off by an incoming transmission.

 ** _"_** ** _Zero! X! This is Alia. Can you two hear me?"_**

"This is Zero. Yeah, we hear you, Alia. What is it?" asked Zero.

 ** _"_** ** _I picked up an emergency signal which originated from one building not too far from your current position. Strangely though, there's no sign of battle. I want you to investigate what's happening there."_**

This time, it was X who answered, "Roger that, Alia. We've received the coordinates and on our way there now."

X turned to his companion. "We'll continue this later. Come on, Zero!"

"Right behind you X!"

With loud roars from their bikes, the two Hunters sped towards their destination while hoping that nobody was harmed on their way there.

When they arrived at the scene, both X and Zero were expecting some rogue Reploids and Mechaniloids running amok, but Alia's information as correct.

Instead of Mavericks, they found a group of humans dressed in green uniforms looting some weapons and crates before loading them inside the hover trucks parked nearby. Some security officers and Reploid guards were scattered on the ground, all unconscious.

The two Hunters recognized them as being part of the Emerald Spears, a group of humans that hated robots, especially the Reploids, believing that they were dangerous beings with the rise of the Mavericks being absolute proof. While their fear was reasonable, their extreme prejudice against all robotic life to the point of indiscriminate violence had caused chaos among the citizens who in return viewed them as little more than terrorists.

Nobody really knew when the group had formed in the first place, but it was believed that they had existed long before the Reploids were introduced.

And while not as organized or technologically advanced as the Maverick organizations, they were still dangerous to inexperienced Hunters.

"It's the Emerald Spears! They are raiding the Weapon Museum!" X exclaimed, jumping off from his vehicle followed by Zero.

"I swear these morons never know when to give up." The Red Hunter grunted in annoyance, "Where are the police anyway?"

"I've already contacted them, but they said it'll take a while and we can't just let these people do as they please just because they are human!" replied the Blue Hunter who then turned to his partner.

"I'll tend to the injured while you hold them back until the police come. Try not to harm them too much, Zero."

"Wha!? H-hey, X! Dammit…!" Before Zero could say anything else, X had already rushed towards the injured guards and Reploids. One Spear member carrying an assault rifle noticed Zero and recognized him immediately judging from his shocked expression.

"T-THE RED DEVIL IS HERE! EVERYONE! THAT BLONDE HAIRED DEMON IS HERE!" He shouted aloud to his teammates.

 _'_ _Red Devil huh? That's new.'_ thought Zero at his new nickname.

"W-WHAT!? DESTROY! DESTROY IT BEFORE IT ATTACKS US!" Another one shouted. Zero could only facepalm and shake his head as if he was having a headache.

 _'_ _These robo-phobes... do they seriously think those peashooters and firecrackers can damage my armor?'_

In an instant, the Red Hunter found himself surrounded by Emerald Spear members with their weapons ready to fire. Normally, anyone who got caught in this situation would have no choice of winning according to the odds, however for the veteran Hunter…

"Those are some really nice toys you have there." complimented an unfazed Zero before he cracked his fists and gave them his trademark grin.

"It's already late now, so let me give you guys a really effective sleeping pill, okay? I doubt that it will taste good though."

…it was just another Tuesday night as gunfire was heard followed by complete silence.

...

 _Next Morning - Hunter Base_ _–_ _Medical Ward_

When the morning came, sunlight illuminated the room. There, the sliver haired girl was sleeping soundly and this time, she lacked the oxygen mask and the IV.

At his station, Lifesaver was still busy monitoring the girl's condition from the holo-screens, making sure nothing had gone wrong from last night considering that he stopped giving her anymore E-Tanks due to her blood levels having returned to normal. In fact he actually stayed awake all night as he didn't need sleep due to his nature as a Reploid.

As convenient as it sounded, that didn't mean he didn't enjoy resting his optic eyes once in a while. He still felt how refreshing it was when he woke up from his maintenance chamber fully energized after reserving his functions or 'sleeping' as humans called the process.

After last night's incident which involved the Emerald Spears terrorist group, the other Lifesavers had gotten a call to go to the nearby hospitals and help the injured humans while the damaged Reploids were being repaired by the mechanics here. This particular Lifesaver had chosen to stay here to watch over the mysterious girl.

Sometimes he glanced at the sleeping form of the patient and a smile which he rarely showed in front of others crept onto his face. He didn't know why but it relaxed him when he heard her faint snoring, indicating that she was sleeping soundly after her near death experience.

Feeling that everything was fine, Lifesaver thought he could leave her for a while to help the mechanics repair the injured Reploids at the maintenance bay and he stood up to leave his workstation.

But as he left the ward, no one except the security cameras installed there noticed the girl's eyelids which started twitching before they slowly opened, revealing yellow irises.

Now awake and brought back into the world of the living, the mysterious girl found herself in a completely unfamiliar place...

* * *

 **Aaaand that's it. Shoukaku finally awakes but what will happen next?**

 **For those who don't know the Emerald Spears, they are group of anti technology extremists from Archie Mega Man led by Harvey Greenleaf before Xander Payne took over the leadership and uses more violent method.**

 **Until next time dear readers.**


	4. A Rude Awakening

**First update of this year and the 4th update of this story. Thanks for the F-14 Tomcat Lover for helping with the ideas and Vandenbz for the proofread.**

 **Now for non-account reviews:**

 **Guest – Hmmm... that could work well.**

 **J – Will do, sir. Thank you for your tips.**

 **A Random Guy – Thanks. That really means a lot for me. Don't worry, I still working on the rest, but I just don't have enough time lately.**

 **Guest#2 – Still under progress. I'm struggling with the part how I should write the mature content scene or if I should keep it T rated.**

 **Guest#3 – Today, good sir.**

 **Anon Review – That would be too OP. Special weapons will appear but not all of them.**

 **Guest#4 – Yeah I knew. Too bad I don't own PS4 yet. And I really hope that shadowed villain is Sigma Ultron fusion.**

* * *

 _Shoukaku's POV_

Falling… cold and darkness… those were what she felt now...

This sensation was awfully familiar, almost like what she felt back then during the Battle of the Philippine Sea.

Yes, this sensation… she was sinking again…

But how did that happen? Everything was proceeding normally as they were about to return to the base. Her radar didn't even pick up any incoming attacks or remaining Abyssals.

As her body with her now tattered clothes sank into the depths of the abyss, Shoukaku slowly opened her eyes and she could barely see five figures circling right above her. Even though she couldn't clearly see them from the lack of light and her own blurred vision, she could clearly tell they were her teammates and her sister Zuikaku.

Just when she thought they could be together forever after being reunited again... but it seemed fate had other plans.

Her mind flashed back to the memories of her days at Yokosuka Naval Base. When she first came out from the construction yards, getting used to her humanoid body, meeting the Admiral and Ooyodo for the first time, coordinating with her fellow Aircraft Carriers, tasting human food.

But the most precious of them all was when the fleet had successfully built her sister, Zuikaku. It was almost like a dream came true to see her again after so many years had passed. So many things that they cherished together during the downtime outside of battle, both pleasant and unpleasant such as when they had a bath together, making origami cranes for Nagato who got bedridden for catching a cold back then, having a curry contest with the girls from different divisions although they didn't win in the end, making chocolates for the Admiral and the other girls, including Kaga and Akagi on Valentine's Day.

Oh, the last one, she could never forget that moment. The looks on her sister and Kaga's faces when they tried to give chocolates to each other out of appreciation were priceless. Maybe they were often at each other's throats but they were just too shy to express their mutual feelings.

Like Akagi-san always said, both of them really should be more honest with themselves.

But reality wasn't like a fairy tale where everyone got a good ending. One way or another, life comes to an end somehow, like now...

All those memories would be swept away forever by the coldness of the sea by the time she closed her eyes for the last time.

"Zuikaku… I'm sorry." She mumbled sadly, bubbles slipping out from her mouth and her eye corners. "It looks like I couldn't keep our promise to always be together..."

Shoukaku reached out her hand, hoping to reach her sister even though she knew it was just a desperate attempt as her view slowly blackened, fading away.

"I still wanted more… so much…"

"Akagi-san… Kaga-san… I'm sorry but… please look after her for me… okay?"

And thus, the IJN Shoukaku finally accepted her fate as she let her hand fell to her side before closing her eyes, only this time she wouldn't awake again for eternity…

Or so she thought…

"..."

"..."

"..."

 _"... it is the one."_

…What was that?

 _"...waste the... for a human?"_

 _"Tell that to... eccentric doctor… human lookalike."_

Voices..?! No way…!

 _"...to the brig. Set... course back to… base..."_

There were voices… faint and barely audible but Shoukaku could hear them. But what were they saying? She didn't understand. The language being spoken didn't sound like Japanese at all…

And this hard, cold feeling on her palms, legs, and back… was she leaning against a metallic wall on a metal floor?

But how in the world was that possible? Hadn't she sunk? Falling into the abyss where she'd rejoin her fallen comrades?

With what remaining strength she had, Shoukaku forced her eyelids open.

She finally could comprehend her surroundings when she took in the view before her. The carrier was inside of what appeared to be a very unfamiliar dark room full of metal crates with two doors on each end. But what caught her attention were two figures in metal suits. She couldn't see their faces though because her eyes were only half open.

 _"Hey look! She awakes."_ said one figure as he walked towards her.

To her surprise, when said figure kneeled down, the first thing she saw was the face of... a hammerhead shark with a red gleaming nose?

Suddenly, the shark man creature grabbed her cheeks very hard while displaying a smile full of sharp fangs that looked like they could easily tear apart human flesh. Shocked by his action, Shoukaku's eyes shot open in response, finally getting the full view of the shark man and the other armored figure whose face was half hidden by his helmet, an accessory which sported a single camera-like eye and he was clad in purple armor. If there was something else she noticed aside from the strange looking armor they had, both of them had bulky lower arms and legs.

Gazing back at the shark man, she could feel her body trembling in fear as his face got closer to hers while baring his teeth. She was too weak even to scream, let alone move. There was no way she could fight back.

 _'S-Stop! Stay back..! Stay AWAY..! STAY AWAY FROM ME!'_

Shoukaku was terrified, she closed her eyes and looked away, not wanting to see what he was going to do with her. She thought she was about to be eaten alive by this shark man until she heard a chuckle coming from him.

 _"Heh, scared of us, aren't we?"_ said the shark faced man who clearly enjoyed her reaction _. "Don't worry, girl. We won't do anything to you… yet."_ He said with a wide grin at the last part which made the silver haired girl wince and shiver from the sight of his teeth. Unfortunately she still didn't understand anything he'd said.

The shark-faced man then stood and turned to address the armored figure.

 _"Take her to the cell and make sure she stays alive. She's no good to 'Doctor' if she's dead."_

 _"Yes, sir!"_

Now it was said figure that walked towards her and before she knew it, Shoukaku felt her body being lifted and carried around on his metal shoulder like a bag. Was she going to be taken somewhere?

It wasn't a long walk until she was brought into a familiar dark corridor which she recognized as a dungeon. She knew it because back in the naval base, there was a facility like this in the underground area used to detain POWs which now functioned as a bunker in case a heavy storm or earthquake happened.

 _"Now, get inside!"_

Suddenly, the armored figure grabbed Shoukaku by her tattered clothes and then threw her inside like a cat. Despite her pained response, the armored figure didn't show any sympathy as he just closed and locked the door, leaving her alone.

The cell itself was empty and there wasn't even a bed there, just a metal floor and walls...

Too confused and weak to command her body anymore, Shoukaku couldn't do anything but give in as she lied down and closed her eyes again, letting exhaustion overcome her…

"..."

"..."

"..."

 _"Hey... are you okay?"_

 _ **\- Chapter 4: A Rude Awakening -**_

 _Hunter Base Medical Bay – Ward_

When the silver haired carrier opened her eyes again, she was greeted with a blurry view of a clean white ceiling and a very cushy, comfortable feeling on the back of her head all the way down to her heels. She also felt the familiar warmth wrapped around her body which she recognized: A blanket...

Her consciousness kicked in as she realized where she was: in a bed.

Feeling dizzy from the intense light exposure, Shoukaku groaned and brought both her hands to rub her eyes while shifting her position into leaning on the bed. When she opened her eyes again, the first thing she saw was a thick layer of white blanket.

 _'A... dream?'_ She mentally asked herself, blinking once. Her sinking... the scary shark-faced man... all of it was just a bad nightmare?

 _"So it was just a nightmare... a nightmare..."_

A relieved sigh came out of her mouth as she held her chest in an attempt to calm herself, but sadly her relief didn't last long when she realized something: she never slept in a bed; she used a futon.

By reflex, she turned her head, only to find that she was inside what appeared to be a hospital ward; a very alien one. Unlike the one she knew from the Naval Hospital in Yokosuka, the room was filled with strange machines which she guessed to be the medical installations and the floating beds, yes 'floating beds'. At first she thought her eyes were deceiving her, but after she rubbed her eyes again to double-check, the beds really didn't have any legs supporting them from below.

Panicked and confused at the same time, she looked down and noticed that she wasn't in her usual sleeping wear, instead she sported a white gown used by the patients of the hospital. She rolled the sleeves to check if she still had the burns from her supposed 'sinking' and much to her shock: they were still there, albeit they had been patched up.

 _"My wounds... they were real?!"_ The carrier exclaimed. A single bead of cold sweat trickled down her cheek before she looked left and right followed by glancing down at her blanket, trying to comprehend her situation. A lot of questions filled her head, most of which she had no idea how to get answers for.

Did she really sink? Was what she saw back then real? The armored figure and the shark-faced man? And how did she end up here and what was this place?

The answer she sought came from the sound of a sliding door which immediately caught her attention.

...

 _Minutes earlier - Lifesaver's POV_

Lifesaver walked out from the maintenance area and he had never felt so tired. Who would have thought that the damage done by these anarchic humans to the security Reploids would be bad enough to shut down their main power unit, forcing him to replace multiple components? Fortunately, their IC's (Integrated Chips) weren't damaged from it as they were a crucial part of a Reploid's personality. Without them, a Reploid would be no less than a mindless robot or 'soulless' as humans would say. But still, to think that they were attacked indiscriminately along with their human partners, just because they simply existed...

Damn terrorists and their radical ideas...

Standing in front of a vending machine, the Reploid pressed a button which produced a ***CLANK*** sound, prompting him to crouch down to grab the E-Tank from the receptacle. He opened the can and took a sip to refill his energy a bit before letting out a satisfied breath. He really could use a charging pod to get some rest.

But as a doctor, Lifesaver knew his responsibility and could not just leave his special patient unsupervised, especially since his brothers were out there until she fully recovered. So instead of taking a rest, he walked back into the ward where he'd left the mysterious girl sleeping.

Upon entering the room, the medic was greeted with a sight that made his eyes widen a bit that had he been not careful, the E-Tank in his hand would have slipped and fallen to the floor.

The girl was now awake and she was looking at him with a rather shocked expression on her face upon seeing his arrival.

"Ma'am, you're awake..." said Lifesaver. He quickly put his E-Tank on the nearby stand and walked towards her bed to ask if she was okay before telling X. Unfortunately, before he could say another word, the bedridden girl in front of him did something unexpected...

 _"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"_

The doctor was startled by her scream. He could see the look on her face; she was terrified. Her eyes were wide while her irises and pupils had shrunk. Was she scared of his presence?

"Ma'am, please calm down. I'm here to help-" Lifesaver tried to calm the girl, trying to convince her that he meant no harm as he approached her bed, however...

"Ma'am? HEY! What are you doing!?"

The silver haired girl suddenly felt an adrenaline rush and jumped up from her bed. Ignoring her current state of her health and wardrobe, she ran past the medic Reploid, shoving him towards the door.

 _"GET AWAY FROM ME!"_

"Ma'am! Get back here!" Lifesaver tried to call her, forgetting that she had just yelled at him in the foreign language known as Japanese, but it was too late, the girl was gone and considering her undiscovered abilities, she could cause a catastrophe around the base if she was on the loose. He had to stop her now!

"Urgh! I'm not an agile model but that doesn't mean I can't go after her!" With a grunt, Lifesaver chased after his escaping patient while taking a mental note to install emergency acceleration systems on his frame and maybe his brothers.

The medic Reploid continued running, using his thermal sensors to track the girl. After locating her position, Lifesaver activated his comm. unit.

"Guards! I need assistance! Stop the female human who is fleeing in section E7, ASAP!"

...

 _Meanwhile at the Main Hall_

In the main hall, many Reploids of both genders, all dressed in various suits of armor, were gathered as if they were having a ceremonial event. The truth was these Reploids were the recently recruited Hunters who had passed the final initiation exam to become B-Class Hunters.

Standing before them were X and Zero with the former giving them a speech about what being a Maverick Hunter. Zero and many senior Hunters from when the Blue Bomber was still a rookie stood behind him. Years, decades, almost a century had passed since the precursor of all Reploids joined the Maverick Hunters. He was almost a completely different person from the perspective of the the veteran Hunters.

Back then, X was so hesitant to pull the trigger and preferred more peaceful solutions. Some might find him quite naïve because of this, often putting himself in dangerous situations that almost got him destroyed. As time progressed with a lot of gain and loss he had experienced from his missions, X had been shaped into what he was now. While he was still the same X inside, he didn't hesitate anymore to pull the trigger and knew whether his enemies were worth being forgiven or not. In fact, there were some adversaries in his past that he preferred destroyed...

"As Maverick Hunters, it's our job to protect innocents from the menace of the Mavericks." X spoke to them, his voice echoing from the amplifier. "However, sometimes we might encounter the anti-robot human group known as the Emerald Spears. While we've given authority by local law enforcement to stop them, we aren't allowed to use lethal force."

"And being a Maverick Hunter doesn't mean you can just go and act like a hero is going to save the day when a Maverick attacks." warned the Blue Bomber. "Watch each other's back and work together as a team even to take down a single enemy. One mistake and you may have to pay with your life or your comrade's..."

Silence filled the hall after X finished, however none of them looked tense or concerned with what he just said. Seeing that none of them said anything in return, the Blue Bomber concluded that they had all understood his speech and glanced at his red partner who gave him a nod in return.

"With this, I congratulate you all for passing the initiation exam. You're now officially B-Rank Hunters!"

The hall was filled with cheers as the new recruits congratulated each other. As if they had forgotten the risks of a Hunter's duty, they started talking about hoping to be put in the same team as X or Zero and wondering if they could get customized equipment. The atmosphere of the hall now was like that of students who had just graduated from high school.

"I can't believe I'm a real Maverick Hunter now!"

"I hope my first mission won't be too dangerous..."

"I wonder if I can get a cool energy sword like Zero's!"

"I thought X and Zero had another member in their team? Uh, what was his name again? Axe? Axel? Axle?"

Both Hunters chuckled lightly at the joyful sight and left the podium since their part was over. They would soon be followed by the A-class Hunters who would take them under their guidance and command as part of their team. As they walked through the hallway, X started to speak first.

"The number of new recruits we got this time is definitely increasing compared to the last time."

"Heh, they did quite well in the simulation exams, but let's see how they handle the real thing." Zero said, crossing his arms before he turned to X. "Remember that retired freshman who cried over his chipped paint job?"

X rolled his optics at that unpleasant memory. It was true that while the new recruits had shown their skills in field tests and exams, that didn't mean all of them were strong willed enough to handle the real thing. It had been recorded that a few recruited Hunters had retired in only a few days or weeks after being assigned on their first missions because of trivial things like what Zero said, and that was only one of the cases.

"You got a point there."

As they walked, the blonde Hunter noticed the pathway they were taking led to the medical wing instead of the command center. Zero could already tell where they or more specifically X wanted to go.

"Hey X, are you going to visit that girl?" asked Zero.

The Blue Bomber gave him a nod in reply. "Yeah. You want to come along?"

The blonde swordsman Hunter shook his head lightly, stopping in his tracks.

"Nah, I think I'll pass." And with that, Zero turned around and waved a goodbye as he walked in the opposite direction. "I'll see you in the command center. We still have our patrol later."

"Got it." with a thumbs-up, X continued towards his destination. But, upon arriving there, the blue Hunter saw Lifesaver with a few male and female Reploids whom he recognized as the base guards from their armor design. He noted that some of them appeared to be lightly damaged as if there had been some kind of scuffle at some point when he wasn't around.

"I'm sorry that you had to endure all of that because of her. But please understand that she's suffering extreme mental trauma and isn't in her right mind." Lifesaver lowered his head in an apologetic manner.

"Don't worry about that, doc. I still can use my right arm to fix my left." The female guard replied, waving her right arm to reassure him she was fine. "Besides, nobody got hurt or badly damaged in the end, that's all that matters."

"Yeah, this is nothing compared to when we tried to restrain that mercenary Maverick." The male guard also added, rubbing his chin which appeared to have a dent on it. "And... with a bit of tinkering, my lower jaw's shape should be back to normal."

"I see. You may return back to your post then."

Nodding, the guards left towards where X had come from, giving said Hunter a salute as well while addressing his rank. However, as they walked away, X managed to overhear one of them...

"Darn, that girl really gave me a wallop. Is she really a human?"

 _'What...?'_

"Lifesaver." X called him, making the medic Reploid turn to him.

"Oh, X." replied Lifesaver who then approached the Hunter. "I'm guessing that you're here to check on that girl?"

"Yeah." he nodded, "But first of all, what happened?"

With a sigh, Lifesaver motioned X to follow him. "Maybe it's better if I explain inside, X."

But when X and Lifesaver entered the ward, the former was greeted with a sight that made his optic eyes widen in shock. The silver haired girl lay in her bed, restrained with her limbs cuffed to the sides of the bed like a mental hospital patient.

"Lifesaver! What did you do to her?!" X angrily demanded an answer as he approached her bed before glaring at the doctor.

"X, please calm down!" Lifesaver's voice was calm but stern as he tried to explain. "That girl suddenly freaked out when she saw me come in, and when she managed to run away I had to call the guards to stop her."

X's eyes went wide from this as he recalled the state of the guards when he saw them and what one of them said earlier. "You mean, they got injured like that because..."

"Yes, when they tried to subdue her, it turned out she actually possessed enough physical strength to fight back and inflict minor damages to a few of them." Lifesaver ended his explanation with a shake of his head. "I had no choice but to administer a sedative and strap her down so she won't cause a ruckus when she awakes again."

The Blue Bomber glanced at the girl and looked back at Lifesaver. Although he seemed to calm down a bit, X was still upset by the doctor's method.

"But, wasn't there a more humane way to do it? This'll only make her mental trauma worse than before. She could think that we're being hostile to her."

"I know that. That's why we need to talk this over." replied Lifesaver. "I need you and a human to accompany her until she awakes. It would be even better if that person understands Japanese as well."

X understood that since Lifesaver had probably heard her say... or rather shout Japanese lines when she freaked out, however he also wondered why he would need another person to be her companion as well.

"I understand. But why do you need a human?"

"X, remember when I told you that this girl might be suffering from PTSD?" X grimaced when Lifesaver said that as he looked at the sleeping form of the girl and continued: "I think the reason why she was like that when she saw me had something to do with my appearance which triggered bad memories that involved the Mavericks who imprisoned her."

The medic Reploid paused briefly. "You said that she was barely conscious when you found her, so this girl probably would feel more composed with a familiar face which is you, X. However, in a place full of Reploids like me, other than you, I fear that she would feel more scared and insecure here after what happened earlier. That's why I suggest that you bring at least one human to accompany her."

The Hunter agreed and lowered his head, closing his eyes with his finger under his chin as he searched through the contacts from his databanks. It only took seconds until he responded.

"I think I know someone who understands Japanese." X said as he touched his comm. link to make a call. "I'm calling her now."

...

 _Arcadia High-School – Student Medical Center_

A young woman sitting in her office was reading a magazine about herbs and medicines. Being of Asian descent, she possessed long black hair with green matching earrings on her ears and black eyes behind her frameless glasses. Like a typical school nurse, she wore a white lab coat with a long collar, a dark pink turtleneck shirt with a white necklace and a green pendant, black short skirt, brown stocking and black high heels.

On her lab coat was a name tag with her name written as: 'M. Kyoko.'

Normally at this hour, school was already over and most students had already gone home, but some remained in the library or engaged in extracurricular activities.

Heaving out a sigh in boredom, the nurse named Kyoko was about to flip to another page when her cellphone rang. But when she looked at the caller's name, she was a bit taken aback. It was a certain Maverick Hunter whom she occasionally met outside the school and the same one who walked her back home one time when she got tipsy from having a hard party with her colleagues: X.

Wondering what the blue robot possibly wanted from her, she answered the call but X's voice spoke first.

 _ **"Good evening, Miss Minazuki. It's me, X."**_

"X, I told you there's no need to be formal with me. Just call me Kyoko." A nervous laugh could be heard from the other end as Kyoko giggled in amusement.

"So, is there anything I can help you with? I do hope it's not those brats again..."

 _ **"It isn't, ma'am. I just want to ask something because I need your help at Hunter HQ. "**_ The nurse's eyebrow arched slightly in interest. What kind of help did the Maverick Hunter need from her?

"And what is it?"

 _ **"Do you understand Japanese?"**_ There was a moment of silence, as if the nurse almost didn't believe the question he asked. _**"Hello?"**_

"Oh, yeah, I do. In fact I still use it when talking to my parents and some of my relatives." Kyoko replied, finally snapping back to reality before she changed her language into Japanese to prove it. _"But why? I thought Reploids are multilingual."_

 _ **"We... currently have a really weird case on our hands and we need a human who speaks Japanese."**_ X replied back in Japanese. _**"Can you come here to give us a hand?"**_

 _"Hold on a second..."_ pausing their conversation, the woman took out her schedule pad from the medicine drawers and then browsed through it before giving her reply in English. "I don't have any important business today, so I think I can."

 _ **"Then I'll send you a transport to pick you up from your school. Thank you for your cooperation, Miss Minazuki."**_

"It's better than sitting here all day." Kyoko replied with a light chuckle. "I'll have to pack up first then. I'll see you there, X."

After hearing a goodbye from the Blue Bomber, the nurse ended her call. She quickly started organizing the documents on her desk and then putting her belongings inside her handbag. After being done packing up, Kyoko turned off the light and locked the door.

 _'I wonder what the Maverick Hunters could possibly want with me and my understanding Japanese...'_ Kyoko thought as she walked downstairs, greeting any student who still remained there or school staff she passed by.

When she reached the school gate, Kyoko patiently waited for the transport issued from Maverick Hunter HQ which would pick her up. However after waiting a few minutes, she didn't see any form of vehicle coming down the road. She even began reconsidering calling a cab nearby... until a gust of wind blew her long black hair back which caused her to stumble back a bit.

"What the...?" She trailed off; her voice was a bit distorted from an engine noise similar to a helicopter from above followed by a huge shadow it formed on the ground.

Up above her, Kyoko saw a bee-shaped helicopter, the air transport Mechaniloid Bee Blader, descending as it tried to find a good spot for landing. A Maverick Hunter insignia could be seen on its abdomen. Immediately the woman got the idea of what kind of transport that would pick her up as she dusted off her clothes and muttered.

"I was hoping he'd send me something more normal like a car or maybe a taxi..."

* * *

 **For those who are familiar or ever played Rival Schools, yes, this Kyoko is the same one from the game but she's not canon. Think of it like in universe cameo since she's also a Capcom character. I know you probably wonder why I also included her in Rise of the Unicorn chapter 5. To be honest, I don't know any school nurse character aside her.**

 **And this has been on my mind lately, but do you think I should rewrite the White Devil of SEED? Because I think giving Amuro in Hi-Nu Gundam is too OP in SEED universe where he can just crubstomp everything. I'm thinking of giving him back his RX-78 in Hajime Katoki version or...**

 **Perhaps I should replace him with Io Flemming from Gundam Thunderbolt?**

 **Or do you have your own suggestions and ideas? Please tell me if you have.**


	5. Girls and Ships

**Hello everyone. The 5th chapter is here. And today is also the 72nd Anniversary of Indonesia's Independence day, so let's express our gratitude towards our fallen heroes and the still living veterans, because thanks to them, we are what we are now. I know there's a few serious cases in our nation's society, but I believe it still can get better for all of us.**

 **Oh, and forgive me if this is too sudden, but from now on, underlined words like** "this one" **means that the character is speaking in non-English. Why I changed this was because the italicized words would create confusion between foreign language with thoughts or flashback narration.**

 **And as usual, I'd like to thank you Vandenbz and F-14 Tomcat lover for helping me with this story. If only I can meet you guys in person, I'd have taken a selfie of three of us.**

 **Now to respond back the non account reviews:**

 **Guest 25 - Be patient. I'm still formulating the story in my head, but because of my job. I rarely have time to write and often meet with how to compose words. So I hope you don;t mind waiting a bit longer.**

 **guest12 - I decided I won't change them anymore. However, because I feel the chapters are too short for my liking. I'll try to add more expansions. Think of it like additional DLC for PS3/PS4 or XBOX360/ONE Games.**

 **Mega Man fan - Thank you. I'll consider that for later, so I cannot give straight answer now. Okay?**

 **Guest - I'm afraid that it's still too soon for that. Probably 1 or 2 again depending on how I should pace this story. I'm sorry, but please bear a bit longer, okay?**

 **deathgale911 - Yep I knew that. I wonder if it will also come with First Armor and X4 Ultimate Armor in CM Style as well. Oh man, I really want a PS4 so bad now...**

 **Guest - Who knows? Char doesn't have a reason to restore his family's name anymore. He can start from square one, but will he keep his rivalry and personal grudge against Amuro?**

 **Guest - Thank you. I have changed that on my previous chapter. And could I add special armor that can create explosions in wide radius as well?**

 **roserozzer - Thanks. I hope you'll enjoy future chapters as well.**

* * *

 _Yokosuka Naval Base HQ – Admiral's Office_

The admiral's office was the center of the naval base's chain of command where the commander of the Shipgirls issued orders for various tasks and missions while handling the administration of the base. The office itself was a large room filled with standard furniture such as a desk, drawers, and two-level book shelves filled with strategic books with a scale model ship inside an acrylic box. The walls were painted in khaki and dark brown with many paintings and pictures hanging on them. The floors, instead of marble tiles, consisted of cut hinoki wood planks with a burgundy rug in the middle of the room. Two main windows with their red curtains open were mounted on the right side wall next to the desk where a view of the dockyard and its surrounding areas could be seen.

Inside was a Japanese man sitting behind his desk, doing his paperwork. He appeared to be around in his 30's, possessing a buzz-cut hairstyle and wearing a standard JMSDF white navy officer uniform with a pair of reading eyeglasses while his white navy cap hung from the hat rack nearby. His navy rank could be seen on his shoulders: a black emblem with a yellow/golden cherry blossom symbol with three stripes below which denoted his rank as 'Captain'.

However, despite his actual rank, the Shipgirls under his command and the nameplate on his desk referred to him as:

Admiral Shigeki Takeichi…

Signing another document, Shigeki removed his reading glasses, feeling a bit tired from studying all the document papers stacked on his desk, and he still hadn't viewed the unread emails on his computer. Most of them were reports from the navy's Intel division, new Shipgirl transfer documents from another naval base which didn't have sufficient space or resources to maintain them, food & freshwater invoices, an invitation to attend the latest command meeting, and etc.

He really wanted to relax his muscles a bit, so he leaned back and stretched out his arms, letting out a long yawn. It was a good thing that his secretary ship Nagato or Mutsu wasn't there to see him unless he wanted another reprimand from the battleship sisters.

 ***PING!***

"Huh..!?" Alarmed by the sound of the mail notification on his desktop, Shigeki jolted forward, almost falling from his chair had he not been careful. Just when he thought he could finally have peace of mind…

" _(Sigh)_ , Now what…?" reluctantly, the man shifted his mouse and choose to print the mail immediately instead. His eyes were tired enough from looking at all those papers, and the last thing he wanted was to harm his eyesight from looking at the intense light of his computer.

Slowly, the printer chugged until the document finally came out. The man then picked up the paper and was about to read it, but then...

 ***KNOCK!* *KNOCK!***

The sound of the door being knocked on diverted his attention towards the door, wondering who wanted to see him. He silently prayed it wasn't Kongou since he was too tired to deal with her 'Burning Love'... Wait..! Since when did the British returnee even bother to knock first before entering? She would have just barged in, shouting her catchphrase while leaping over his desk into his lap...

Well, at least he could feel a bit relieved knowing that it wouldn't be her.

"Come in." Shigeki answered loud enough to be heard from outside. When the door opened, the tall figure of Nagato and another Shipgirl then walked in. This Shipgirl was a young woman who had short brown hair, green eyes, and was as tall as Nagato. She also wore similar clothing to Nagato with slight color differences and her antenna-like headgear was pointing more upward like a snail's eyestalks, identifying herself as a Battleship of the same class as Nagato.

This Shipgirl's name was Mutsu, the younger sister of Nagato. Both of them had mugs of coffee on their trays, two on Nagato's while Mutsu only had one for herself.

"Admiral. I brewed you a coffee." said the black haired battleship, causing the man to smile a bit in mild amusement. While it still felt awkward for him to be addressed as 'Admiral' whereas his rank was far from it, eventually one would get used to it after a year.

"Thank you, Nagato. Just put it on my desk."

Nagato carefully placed one mug on the desk, so it wouldn't spill on the papers. Mutsu then noticed a single document in Shigeki's hand that he was about to read. In curiosity, thinking that it might be important, she spoke up.

"What's with that paper, Admiral?"

"Oh? This?" The man looked back at the document and began reading it. However, as soon as he finished, his expression turned slightly disappointed, something that wasn't missed by his secretary and her assistant.

"What is it, sir?" The first battleship repeated.

"It's from the Main HQ's logistics department." With another sigh, Shigeki handed the paper to the battleship sisters and began explaining. "They said due to internal affairs, the resources we requested three days ago will have to be postponed. Maybe a week at most..."

"Oh my... That's rather unfortunate, Admiral." Mutsu commented, reading the document briefly. Nagato mused in agreement and put the paper back on the desk and pulled out her personal memo pad (wherever she kept it on her, Shigeki could only guess) which strangely had an embossed sticker of a squirrel at the upper-left corner of the front cover.

"But with our current amount of resources, I can safely assure that we can maintain operations for more than a week." Nagato informed him. "That of course taking into account should we not launch another assault and expedition, and that Akagi doesn't secretly eat the bauxites again..." She muttered the last part, causing the commander to chuckle in mild amusement.

As she closed the memo pad and put it back into its place, the battleship Shipgirl turned to Shigeki.

"Why don't you drink your coffee to ease your mind, Admiral? Drink it while it's still hot."

"Alright then, if you say so..." At her words, Shigeki picked up his mug and began to sip it. His eyes widened a bit in surprise upon tasting the coffee. It was not bitter but also not sweet, a perfect combination of coffee and sugar for his taste.

"Oh? It's good." He said, looking at his own mug before turning to his secretary. "Never knew that you were that good at making coffee."

"Knowing how to brew a good coffee is an important part of being a secretary, Admiral." Nagato stated, looking a bit prideful before she drank her own. Mutsu giggled in response.

"Fu-fu-fu~, I guess Kashima-san's training during her stay here really paid off, eh? Nagato~? Even though you only had a day before she had to return back to her base." She said with a hint of teasing, causing her sister to almost spit-take.

"As expected from one of the Big 7, huh?" Shigeki playfully joked and chuckled, also joining the fun. As the two finished laughing together, Nagato, the poor subject of their teasing, cleared her throat before regaining her composure.

"But still... to think that you even went that far because you're my secretary..." The admiral looked at his mug before turning to Nagato. "I think you could be a good wife for a lucky man out there."

"I'm flattered to hear that, sir. But, please save that until this war is over." The Shipgirl politely turned down his compliment, also smirking.

"Oh my! It looks like the Admiral just suffered major damage from your rejection, Nagato." This time, Mutsu teased her admiral, causing the man to pull his cap to hide his embarrassment from Mutsu's comment.

The truth was that Shigeki actually harbored feelings towards the battleship. She was mature, strong, beautiful, smart, cool-headed, and for a few who knew her, had a soft side she rarely showed in front of everyone else. For him, Nagato was an ideal woman. Nobody knew whether the battleship also felt the same to him. However, the man knew he had to keep his personal feelings towards his subordinates to himself in times like this.

Besides, there were already cases where a few naval base commanders had been found in a relationship with their Shipgirls. Whether their relationships were mutual or not, it was safe to say that it didn't end well for both sides...

Nagato then looked into her own cup and saw her own reflection in her coffee from the sunlight outside and quietly muttered to herself.

"Besides... we are Shipgirls, sir. As per regulations, we weapons aren't allowed to-"

"Stop! I don't want to hear that, Nagato!" The battleship suddenly paused, surprised from her commander's sudden change of tone and turned to him. Shigeki now had his eyes narrowed at her, looking displeased to almost scowling when Nagato said that.

At the same time, the admiral's face slowly became mortified, almost as if he couldn't believe what he had just said to his secretary.

The battleship bowed her head apologetically to him. "My apologizes, Admiral, I didn't-"

"No, Nagato. If anything, I should be the one to apologize for losing my cool like that..." He interrupted. Now filled with a sense of guilt, the man propped his forehead on his hands, looking down in shame.

"It's just... I can't stand it anymore with those fools who think of you Shipgirls as nothing but weapons of war..."

Nagato became silent, refraining from drinking her coffee. Like most of the older Shipgirls, before she met Shigeki and was stationed here, Nagato was aware of her true origin and the purpose of her existence. No matter how human they appeared to be, Shipgirls were not human. They were constructed, meant to be weapons to fight the Abyssal creatures and thus didn't deserve human rights.

While she could accept that fact, not all of the Shipgirls took it well. Some actually wanted to be acknowledged as human beings and even questioned about why they had a human appearance in the first place if they were nothing but expendable assets. Their daily life in the naval base was one of the few places where Shipgirls could act and behave just like normal girls. A blessing if they could get a commanding officer who cared and treated them like equals.

Her sister, Mutsu even told her once some ill rumors that she'd heard from various sources, mainly from the Shipgirls who got transferred here from their previous headquarters, about a few unlucky Shipgirls who had trouble with their commander's policies. While she still couldn't confirm whether they were true or not, that didn't mean she wasn't bothered at all.

"With all respect, Admiral." Nagato spoke again, drawing Shigeki's attention towards her. "What they said wasn't entirely wrong. We are still weapons of war."

"Really? Is that what you truly believe, Nagato?" The admiral arched his eyebrow. "Because all I see in front of my eyes is a brave woman who is willing to put her life on the line to protect the innocent."

"Yes, but I... AM... still a... weapon... wh-that protects the innocent," Nagato stated with confidence, though the Admiral and Mutsu noted the slight pauses in her words, slip of her tongue, and her emphasis on what she was supposed to be.

"Oh, really?" Shigeki and Nagato began a staring contest. A battle of wills. Mutsu knew how stubborn both could be. So she wisely stayed out of it. Though behind her own mug of coffee, she had a small smile about the Admiral's secret weapon.

"Very well, you will convince me, if you can prove otherwise, sir." and with that admission, Shigeki pulled something from his desk and hid what it showed from Nagato.

"Do you know what this is?" Shigeki challenged.

"A picture, sir." Nagato responded right away.

The Admiral smirked and turned it around to show a destroyer Shipgirl, Inazuma, smiling as she reached up at a cute kitten on top of her head. The scene was so adorably cute as Inazuma was dressed as any human girl her age would be. The brown and white tabby with a black patch over one eye appeared to be enjoying itself as well. The two were playing among some autumn leaves as they gently fell to the ground and both were in a pile of leaves, throwing more up into the air. The whole thing was just so darn cute.

And the Admiral blinked as he found his hand suddenly empty.

"Oh my, oh my, oh my..." Mutsu trailed off in exasperation, feeling torn about the image her sister projected as one of the Big Seven and her appearance right now. Rubbing her cheek against the picture and making noises about how she wished she could have been there and all that.

Shigeki can only nod before Nagato realized that she had an audience and that she was in the Admiral's Office.

Clearing her throat as she composed herself and vainly attempted to hide the picture in the hem of her skirt on the back, "Nothing is prove-"

" _Nyaaa~_ " Two small kittens suddenly mewed from under Ooyodo's empty work desk.

Shigeki and Mutsu watched as Nagato spun around in Ooyodo's chair, gently cuddling the two very happy kitties. The sight really made excellent blackmail material, but neither had anything other than memory to record what they were seeing. Still, this was even worse...

Once more remembering where she was and collecting herself, twenty minutes and two bowls filled with fresh milk later, Nagato stood fidgeting in front of the Admiral's Desk. She was once more collected, but it was clear as day that her secret had been most definitely found out. Just not to the larger crowd yet.

"I believe that I've made my point." Shigeki and Mutsu shared a knowing look and a chuckle.

"Yes sir." Nagato also surrendered the picture, albeit a bit reluctantly because she actually wanted to have it herself. Maybe she could ask if Tenryuu had more of them.

"Good." Shigeki smiled disarmingly, "Don't worry. I doubt anyone would actually believe us anyway. So your secret is-"

 ***KNOCK!* *KNOCK!***

But before he could finish that statement, another person knocked on the door, followed by a girl's voice.

"Admiral, it's me Ooyodo. I have the battle report on the recent mission."

"Enter!" he shouted.

Ooyodo was a light cruiser Shipgirl. Her appearance was that of a teenage girl with long black hair and bluish-green eyes. She wore a sailor uniform 'serafuku' over her light blue uniform and a blue pleated skirt with hakama-like hip vents, thigh-highs and a pair of heels instead of a Shipgirl's standard boots. She also wore a green hairband on her head and a pair of frameless glasses. In her hands, she carried notebooks and documents.

For some reason, the expression on the light cruiser's face looked tense, as if there was something unpleasant she wanted to tell them. No one had seen her like this, not since the prelude of the battle against the Airfield Princess in Objective MO.

Just thinking of that place, sent a tingle of fear through Nagato and Mutsu. That place was roughly similar to the actual Objective MO centuries ago. She never saw combat in that mess, but the old IJN had lost five ships in that battle, four Carriers and a Heavy Cruiser. All they got back was one Carrier and a Destroyer, and only because a Submarine got lucky a couple days later.

Nagato had vague memories now of what had happened. A lot of the Shipgirls didn't try to remember. In fact, they actively suppressed their memories of the past. Shigure and Yukikaze were a pair of destroyer-type girls that most definitely wanted to forget the entire war.

Still, the Admiral had played the Abyssal's game and won. He had altered everything and added Taiho to the fleet at the last second. The enemy never saw it coming.

One might say he had cheated. But the Abyssal had stacked the deck. So he hadn't technically cheated if the house did it first.

Admiral Shigeki was ramrod straight in his chair and had his hands on his desk.

"So, how was the mission, Ooyodo?"

Ooyodo began reading the report for him. "The mission was a success, Admiral. The Abyssals were defeated and we've secured the communication lines."

A smile crept onto Shigeki's lips and the two battleship sisters also felt satisfied over another victory. Ooyodo then read another document.

"Both Fubuki and Yuudachi returned with minor damage. Yamashiro and Hyuuga on the other hand suffered moderate damage and some of their riggings need to be repaired. It was said that the two didn't synchronize with each other and constantly argued back and forth during the mission. However, it appears that their poor teamwork was mostly caused by Yamashiro who refused to work together with Hyuuga..."

Shigeki let out an exasperated groan while Nagato took a mental note to talk with the battleship. She'd get a very-very long lecture with her...

"As for Zuikaku and Shoukaku..." Ooyodo's voice suddenly turned grave and she stopped herself from reading further which wasn't unnoticed by the occupants of the room.

"...What happened, Ooyodo?" The admiral asked or more accurately demanded of her. With a heavy heart, the cruiser girl sighed before she answered.

"Only Zuikaku returned from the sortie slightly damaged... Shoukaku didn't make it, sir."

Dead silence filled the room and everyone inside after Ooyodo said that. Nagato's eyes went wide in shock and Mutsu had to cover her gasping mouth in disbelief, almost spilling her coffee while Shigeki only narrowed his eyes.

"No way...!"

"It can't be...!"

It was then that the admiral finally broke the ice.

"Ooyodo, can you give me the report?"

With a nod, the girl handed the report to him and then gave a quick summary.

"When the battle had been finished, Shoukaku was attacked by an unknown enemy from beneath the sea and sunk... The sonars of the destroyers report actual mechanical sounds." She stated to the admiral and two battleships.

Shigeki kept reading the report, flipping one page after another as Ooyodo continued explaining. Both his secretary and assistant, now already recovered from their shock, also leaned over to get a good look at it as well.

"From the description we received, it wasn't an Abyssal submarine but rather something else, sir." And with that said, the admiral finally reached the last page of the report which had a picture of the unknown enemy taken from one of the battleship's scout planes.

Shigeki, Nagato, and Mutsu couldn't see it clearly because the enemy in the picture was nothing more than a dark silhouette. However, there were at least two things they could get from said picture.

One, this new enemy was immense in size because even though it was hidden below the sea, its silhouette alone completely outsized the surrounding Shipgirls that were present around where Shoukaku had presumably sunk.

Second, the enemy had an appearance similar to a whale from the fins and tail they could identify. But what kind of a whale sported faint glowing lights on its eyes? More importantly, if it wasn't an Abyssal, then what was it?

"What is that thing, Admiral?" Mutsu finally asked, narrowing her eyes at the picture. "It looks like..."

"A whale, but it's not..." Nagato finished for her. The battleship then turned to Shigeki. "What do you think it is, sir?"

With his eyes closed as he turned back to Nagato, he answered her with a grave concerned look on his face.

"I wish I knew Nagato, I wish I knew..."

The admiral turned back to Ooyodo.

"Ooyodo, where are the girls who have returned from the mission now?"

 ** _\- Chapter 5: Girls and Ships -_**

 _Hunter Base – Medical Ward_

Currently inside the ward, the aircraft carrier Shoukaku was sleeping in the medical bed, a brand new blanket now covering half of her body, unaware of the presence of three figures around her. These figures were X and Kyoko on the left side of her bed while Lifesaver stood on the right side.

The doctor Reploid was still unsure if this was a wise thing to do. When the human doctor saw how Shoukaku was restrained with cuffs, she had asked him to remove them under the basis that she'd likely be less cooperative if treated like that and she should be treated more humanely. Logically, it was against Lifesaver's good judgment as there was a high chance she would freak out again when she awoke, but seeing how X also supported that idea and that he'd take responsibility, he didn't have much choice. However, for safety's sake, Lifesaver had prepared a sedative-filled injector in one of his fingers should this plan go south.

Seeing that the silver-haired girl was still asleep, Kyoko decided to open the conversation first and gently tapped her shoulder to wake her up.

Shoukaku's body moved slightly in response when she felt something warm touch her shoulder. Her eyes slowly opened, shifting upwards slightly and turning to the first person that came to view.

There she saw a woman, sitting in a futuristic-looking floating chair, at least to her it looked futuristic. Like something out of those science fiction Anime and Manga. Though with the modernist touch that despite looking futuristic, Shoukaku could easily see Ooyodo sitting in it back at base.

With a tilt of her head, she looked at the woman. Dressed in nice clothes that despite having a futuristic look to them, again wouldn't look out of place back home. She had a white coat on that simply looked like any other white coat a doctor would wear. She couldn't see buttons on the woman's shirt, but she could see the outlines of where one half covered the entire front, meeting on the other side. She wore a skirt that was, simply put, universal in its design and function, regardless of when it was manufactured.

Despite what they were surrounded by, the two men in metal, one on her right (from her viewpoint) she recognized was the same one who also spoke her language, the floating beds, and so much more, which were playing havoc with her internal radar and radio as her Faeries reported that they couldn't clean up the signal and return to avoid triggering a splitting headache, the woman before her was calm and patient.

To the woman, this was nothing special.

But to Shoukaku, hearing her voice, "Hello there, can you understand me?" in Japanese and seeing that she was Japanese, made Shoukaku's heart soar as she tentatively responded.

"Y-yes." the silver-haired carrier began, nodding, "I can understand you, doctor."

The woman smiled as the two metal men visibly relaxed a little, "That's good." She continued with a curious expression. "What makes you think I'm a doctor though?"

"Ummm... your coat and this place, right?" the young lady answered, a bit uncertain.

Nodding, Kyoko could agree that was how it would look, but...

"My name is Minazuki Kyoko and actually, I'm a school nurse at a local high school." seeing the young girl's surprised expression, the nurse continued.

"My family is of Japanese descent, though it has been quite a while since then, so the Hunters, namely X here," She indicated the Maverick Hunter who nodded with a kind smile on his face, "knew I spoke it and asked me to come and help them since you responded in quite the panic when you first saw Lifesaver, the resident doctor."

She indicated the white-green clad medic who only nodded. His face was stoic, something which made the aircraft carrier nervous.

"Don't mind his countenance, the Lifesaver series is well known for being stoic, but at their core, they are doctors that seek to help people just as much as they were built and programmed to do so." reassured Kyoko. A grunt from Lifesaver made it clear he was unsure how to take that. X chuckled off to the side and got a flat look from Lifesaver. The universal interaction helped put Shoukaku a little more at ease as she couldn't help but giggle a bit.

Seeing Kyoko awaiting a response, Shoukaku realized she had introduced herself yet, so she did, tentatively and nervously.

"I am the Aircraft Carrier Shoukaku, namesake and lead ship of the Shoukaku-class Aircraft Carriers assigned to Yokosuka Fleet Command."

The responses were immediately varied with considerable surprise on Minazuki-san's face, X actually tilted over and had to use a machine to stay upright, and Lifesaver had a deep frown, but then he stepped forward slightly while taking a small pen out. He activated a light on it as he gently began checking how her eyes responded.

"Excuse me, Shoukaku... san." Lifesaver began, adding the honorific as per Japanese custom on how to address people.

"I've taken the liberty of getting some samples as you rested before you first regained consciousness, and I DID find evidence of what would amount to materials used in ship construction over 200 years ago, but I must say, as the one who's in charge of your health, that being an Aircraft Carrier is very hard to believe and coming from myself, that is no small statement."

X also nodded as well. "Trust me when I say we've seen a lot, Shoukaku-san."

"Though I haven't heard of the Shoukaku-class before, so I can't really say anything..." X trailed off at Lifesaver's flat look.

Kyoko managed to regain her wits and managed to keep speaking Japanese for the benefit of all parties. "I know a few students who modeled some old ships from the 20th Century after the old large model of the Super Battleship Yamato turned up in the Arizona Wastes."

Shoukaku's ears perked again at hearing about a model of Yamato, something Lifesaver noticed as he ran his checks on the self-proclaimed Carrier.

"There was a Shoukaku-class during the Second World War of the 1940s. She was one of two ships of the class and the first dedicated Carrier-class for the long gone Imperial Japanese Navy." Kyoko informed the two Reploids who then shared a look before looking at the confused Shipgirl.

X then had an idea as he reached for his helmet's ear piece and activated his comm unit.

Meanwhile back in the command center, the blonde female navigator currently had an E-Tank in her hand, enjoying a rather peaceful moment. At least until her comm node blipped.

 **"Alia, are you there?"** X's voice came from the other line. The Hunter was now speaking in normal English again.

"I'm here X, what's up?" asked Alia before she took another sip of her drink.

 **"Can you look up the Aircraft Carrier Shoukaku and give me a rundown on how many there were and what happened to them?"**

Alia paused mid-sip. She, like any Reploid in her position, sometimes got unusual requests from the Hunters they worked with. But this one was new and as far as she knew, X was in HQ.

Finishing her drink with a shrug, Alia looked up the information after a 10 minute search, needing her to delve into various historical records before she had the data before her.

"Huh?" Alia was surprised when she saw three images appear on her screen and informed the Blue Bomber of the results. "X, I got three matches for the name and type."

 **"Oh?"** was the response from the Maverick Hunter.

"Yep." the blonde Reploid replied, zooming in on the first picture. "The first is the namesake and lead ship of the Shoukaku-class Carrier that was finished in 1941 for the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was a part of the IJN's 1st Air Fleet or Kidō Butai along with its sister ship, Zuikaku which formed the 5th Carrier Division. The ship in question was sunk three years later by an Allied submarine."

The next picture popped up, "The second was a Japanese Self Defense Force Kii-class Helicopter Destroyer, essentially a Carrier with a different name for political reasons. It was sunk in the 21st Century from a collision with another destroyer caused by hardware failure. That was probably around the time of your ancestor Mega Man."

And finally, the last one, "The final Shoukaku was a Zuikaku-class Fleet Carrier laid down for the Japan Naval Defense Force and was under construction before the island nation was mysteriously isolated."

"I see..." Back in the infirmary, X nodded, looking at Shoukaku, now knowing which ship she claimed to be.

 **"Why did you want to know that, X?"** Alia was curious as she fiddled with her screen.

X figured that the information would need to be kept quiet for now. At least until they figured things out.

"It has something to do with an ongoing investigation, Alia." X told her which actually translated as, 'Can't say on the radio, even inside base.' to her.

 **"** **Understood X.** **"** Alia replied, **"Let me know if you need anything else."**

"Thanks for the help, Alia. Oh, and, sorry for making a strange request while you're on break..." After hearing a giggle from the navigator who then told him that it was okay since it wasn't a big deal, X chuckled lightly and closed the line.

X promptly explained to them in their native language what the navigator had just told him and Kyoko raised an eyebrow before turning to Shoukaku, almost in disbelief.

"You mean, you are THAT Shoukaku? The Imperial Japanese Navy's Shoukaku from the mid-20th century?" The woman almost exclaimed.

Shoukaku was also quite surprised to learn there had been two more ships after her. She didn't question how fast they got the information too.

Maybe she wasn't computer savvy, but the girl knew what computers were after all.

"I am her and she is me." Shoukaku supplied as the three looked back her. "We were summoned back as the 'Kanmusu' to fight the 'Shinkaisei-kan'."

 _'Fleet girls? Abyssal ships?'_ X translated in his mind, raising his eyebrow in curiosity. " Kanmusu? Shinkaisei-kan?"

"Yes. You've never heard about them?" The carrier nodded and tilted her head slightly in mild confusion.

X shook his head in reply. "Can't say we have, Shoukaku-san. Mind telling us what they are?"

Shoukaku blinked, wondering how they could not know about Shipgirls and the Abyssal creatures' existence when they had existed for more than a century. Well, maybe she could understand the former since the Shipgirls' existences were kept secret from the public.

Nevertheless, she began filling them in...

"The Kanmusu are what we are called. We are the spirits of the ships in the past that had fought for our nation" explained Shoukaku. "The Shinkaisei-kan on the other hand are our enemies that emerged from the bottom of the sea. They have isolated our nation and we have been called forward once more to fight them off."

Silence filled the room as everyone had various thoughts after taking this newfound information. Lifesaver still found her explanation illogical and irrational since he didn't believe in the concept of reincarnation. He only believed in data and facts. Kyoko on the other hand was familiar with Shinto's animism concept where even inanimate things actually had souls even though she didn't really believe it.

X however had another thought...

No one ever knew what really happened to Japan 200 years ago except that there was a strong electromagnetic field caused by an unknown phenomenon powerful enough to take down airships and boats whenever they were nearby. The satellite camera couldn't get anything other than dark stormy clouds all over there. One could only guess if its citizens were still alive there or had vanished as well.

The world government back then had to declare the area to be a 'Danger Zone', prohibited to entry by all means before eventually removing Japan from the world map ever since. And yet despite all of that, a few expedition attempts to find out what happened over there had been done in secret in the hope of discovering the cause of the unknown phenomenon. However, none of them bore successful results as they all disappeared without a trace...

And this girl, a self-proclaimed reincarnated 20th century IJN aircraft carrier in front of them had just told them what could be the possible answer to this mystery. Giving out her nature which was neither human nor Reploid, X wanted to give her a chance to see if her words weren't made up, but was there really another enemy group other than Mavericks out there that they didn't know about all this time?

"Ummm... ano..." Shoukaku's timid voice brought the three back from their own thoughts and back to the aircraft carrier who looked nervous.

"How come you people never heard about the Shinkaisei-kan?" The carrier wondered aloud, looking at the three with a questioning look. "I thought that everyone had known of their existence ever since they attacked two centuries ago..."

 _'Two centuries ago? That was around the time before the island nation was declared as lost!'_ X pointed out in his mind. If he tried to connect the dots, then there was only one conclusion that he could pull up...

Shoukaku spoke the truth: Japan still existed out there. And it was currently at war against these Abyssal ships which had completely isolated them from the rest of the world with whatever they did to create such an electromagnetic wave to prevent outside forces from intervening.

But that left him with another question: Why did the Abyssal only select Japan as their target?

"Like what X just told you, we've never heard of the Shinkaisei-kan or Kanmusu until you mentioned them." Once again X snapped out of his train of thought and turned to the source of the voice.

It was Lifesaver who had answered her, and the medic Reploid shook his head. "Maybe your kind and the people of Japan have known of them for that long, but this isn't Japan."

The medic's words felt like a bomber plane had dropped its payload on her head as Shoukaku gasped in shock. She wasn't in Japan anymore? It was impossible! ...or was it?

Granted that everything she had seen so far was so foreign and unfamiliar to the Shipgirl, especially when she heard X speak in the language she didn't understand. But since she'd never heard of what happened to the nations outside Japan when the Abyssals attacked, she like most of her fellow Shipgirls and people of Japan was under the impression that they were the only civilization left on earth.

"B-but if this isn't Japan then... then where am I?" The aircraft carrier now felt confused, panicked, and overwhelmed as she flicked back and forth between the others.

X stepped forward and placed his right hand on the silver-haired girl's shoulder, attempting to calm her down.

"Easy there, Shoukaku-san. You're currently at the Maverick Hunter's HQ in Arcadia City, specifically the medical facility."

Shoukaku looked back at the hunter, feeling a bit more at ease. "Maverick Hunter..? Arcadia City..?"

"A Maverick Hunter is..." X trailed off, thinking of how to explain it to her without having to take a very long time describing what Reploids were until he got an idea how.

"Well... Shoukaku-san. First of all, are you familiar with the term: 'robot'?" He asked.

"Huh?" The Shipgirl blinked once and put her finger under her chin in thought. Yes, she had ever heard of them from the 6th division when they watched one particular heroic sci-fi anime about a boy who looked like a human but his body was that of a machine. If she remembered correctly, that character's name was...

"You mean, like 'Tetsuwan Atom'?" Shoukaku looked back at X.

"Yeah, close enough." X replied back with a light chuckle before he tapped his chest.

"I and Lifesaver here are robots. But we possess free will and human-like faces to make it easier to interact with other human beings like Kyoko here." He explained, motioning to the medic who waved back in return.

"Whoa..! You two are ROBOTS..?!" Shoukaku wondered aloud in amazement, finding it hard to believe that these two men in strange metal suits were actually robots.

By now, the aircraft carrier girl's nervousness had been replaced with childlike curiosity. If Akashi or Yuubari were here, maybe they'd have asked them a ton of questions with fiery enthusiasm.

X nodded, "That's right. And we along with other robots here are part of the 'Maverick Hunters'. A group formed to fight the criminals out there called the 'Mavericks'."

"In other words, they are the good guys, so you don't have to worry." added Kyoko.

Shoukaku nodded at them. At least it was relieving to know that she had been with potential allies all this time. Well, she should have expected that as there was no way an enemy would treat a prisoner like she was now. She turned to X again.

"But, the Mavericks. What are they?"

"Rogue robots." X answered with a solemn look. "I guess you can say that they were the ones who put you in that cell."

"Mavericks..." The carrier trailed off, recalling one of the two unknown figures who she remembered had this scary shark face. Just remembering those sharp looking teeth almost gave her chills.

"As for Arcadia City..." She turned to Lifesaver who was rubbing his chin to find an easier way to explain. "All I can say is that you're very far away from your homeland now."

"I-I see..." was the only response that came from the carrier before she looked down at her blanket, trying to cope with the situation. At least she was still alive and breathing again which meant she could still see her sister again. Speaking of her...

 _'_ _I wonder how Zuikaku is doing now..._ _'_ wondered Shoukaku. The poor girl must still be in shock, thinking that her sister was truly sunk after the last sortie.

It brought her back to when the carrier caught a cold in the past. When Zuikaku was the one who had to take care of her, she was very protective or maybe a bit too much. That girl even questioned Admiral Shigeki or any stronger Shipgirl in a confrontational tone when they came to see her.

And yet, Zuikaku was still a good girl. During that time, she always accompanied Shoukaku so that she wouldn't be lonely when the others were out on a mission. Shoukaku couldn't ask more than having her as a sister.

Shoukaku really wanted to see and comfort her, revealing that she was alive and well, but how? From what Lifesaver had told her, she was pretty far away from home. How could she find a way to return to Japan?

Swallowing her saliva, the girl looked up at both X and Lifesaver.

"What's going to happen to me now? Can I go back to Japan? To Yokosuka? I really miss my sister..."

Lifesaver was the one who answered first as the medic took out his data-pad and then cleared his throat.

"Well Shoukaku-san. I think you should talk about it with our commander. But first of all, I need to ask you a few questions before-"

 ***Grooowll~***

The medic however was cut off in mid-sentence by a grumbling noise that also caught X and Kyoko's attention. Reploids couldn't feel hungry like humans and had another method to inform them that they were low on energy and Kyoko didn't appear to be hungry since the nurse looked as confused as them. Which meant...

All eyes shifted towards the only occupant left in the room, Shoukaku's face suddenly went deep red from the stares she was receiving as she looked down in embarrassment and held her belly where the sound came from.

She was hungry... and out of all times and places it had to happen now...

" _(Giggle)_ Well Lifesaver, it looks like your first question would be: Is there anything you'd like to eat, Shoukaku-san?" Kyoko giggled and turned to the Shipgirl. Said girl was still refusing to look up at them.

"Then I will postpone my questions." Lifesaver replied, putting down the data-pad and looked at Shoukaku. "Besides, from my understanding, humans think better when their daily food needs are fulfilled."

X chuckled as he reached for his comm unit to make a call for food delivery. "I know this one restaurant that serves great food. Is there anything you'd like to eat as well, Kyoko?" he asked the nurse who then placed her finger under her chin in thought.

"Hmmm... anything would be fine as long as you're the one paying." answered the woman, earning another amused chuckle from X in response before turning to the carrier Shipgirl. "How about you, Shoukaku-san?"

"E... Eeeeh?" At the second time of her name being called, Shoukaku snapped out of her trance and looked at them, realizing what they were offering her.

However, the carrier felt it hard to answer right away. Instead, Shoukaku felt uncomfortable at heart, feeling like she was taking advantage of their generosity at a time like this. Usually, it was either her or Zuikaku who would suggest hitting up Mamiya's or Houshou's for lunch.

And besides, if they had never heard about Shipgirls before, then that meant they didn't know about their increased appetite level compared to humans. However, another grumble from her 'boiler' prompted Shoukaku to take the offer. And yet, her mind still insisted that it didn't sit right for her.

In the end through, the carrier finally gave in and muttered a few words which unfortunately were too low for a human to hear.

"...come again?" Kyoko cocked her eyebrow, confused. But X and Lifesaver, having enhanced hearing, still managed to understand what the girl just said.

"...you want to eat five bowls of Katsudon Curry?" The medic Reploid repeated, earning a shocked gasp from the nurse.

X rubbed the back of his helmet, a bit uncertain with her request as well. "Are you sure that you can... uh, eat them all at once?"

"Y-yes." The carrier weakly nodded and began explaining. "We Shipgirls possess greater appetites which means we need to eat food in greater amounts to recover our energy. Another way is for us to consume raw materials like steel, bauxites, live ammunition, and fuel."

The hunter, medic, and nurse couldn't help but cringe slightly at the last part. How was it possible for a Shipgirl to eat all those hard materials? Even to their understanding, Reploids, unless they had been designed to do such a thing for recycling purposes, wouldn't be able to eat raw metals as a main source of energy.

Lifesaver took this as a mental note to ask the Shipgirl further questions about her nature later, X also wanted to know more, but that could wait until he picked up dinner.

...

 _Unknown Place – Mysterious Facility_

Somewhere hidden from public eyes was a laboratory-grade facility. The interior of the place was a dark, humid, cave-like area devoid of sunlight. The only light sources were the light bulbs from machines installed on ground level and the cable tubes sending electric currents once every few seconds. These cables split into smaller ones, leading towards a bigger area with three rows of glass tube chambers.

And inside these tubes, various grotesque creatures were contained in stasis via a strange liquid. Some of these creatures looked like deep sea fish with black plating for skin, glowing eyes, and tooth-filled mouths. Some looked like female humans with pale skin, scaled arms or legs and a few black cannon-like contraptions attached to their bodies. The rest looked like a mix of a female human top but an abnormal bottom or vice versa.

On the observation deck, a scientist Reploid was leaning forward, his hands holding the railings, looking at the only empty glass tube. This Reploid had a humanoid appearance with a white body frame and red/blue highlights, especially on his wrist armor and legs. However, his head, unlike most Reploids who possessed human faces so they could blend in better with humans, this Reploid instead possessed a gas-mask for a face with yellow glowing eyes and a big round head in red, blue and white.

"Hyeh-heh-heh. Soon, my research will be complete once the final specimen arrives here." The scientist Reploid then turned around, walking in a circle in slight agitation and impatience.

"But what is taking them so long!? Those inferior metal-heads should have been here with my prized possession by now!"

His question was answered when the shutter door leading inside slid open, and the hammerhead shark-like Maverick walked in.

"Ah! You're finally here." The scientist welcomed him happily like a child who had been waiting for a gift from his parents. "So, where is 'my last and finest specimen', hmmm?"

"About that, doctor..." The shark Maverick lowered his head and explained what had happened. And the scientist's reaction was...

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU LOST IT!?" The doctor all but shouted, stomping his foot furiously.

"YOU INCOMPETENT LOW-GRADE FOOL! HOW WAS IT SO HARD FOR YOU TO RETRIEVE ONE CARRIER SHIPGIRL INTACT? YOU'RE USELESS! USELESS PIECE OF SCRAP METAL!"

The shark Maverick however didn't feel angry or intimidated in the slightest as he knew that for all of his insults, this scientist didn't have absolute control over him.

"I think that I told you how we ran into unexpected interference from the Hunters. And this intruder was none other than your old adversary, X-"

"STOP...! DON'T! SAY! THAT! NAME! TO MY AUDIO PERCEPTORS! EVER!" The doctor suddenly snapped back, emphasizing every word with utter disdain. This time, the hammerhead shark Maverick only narrowed his optics slightly in mild annoyance.

A plume of steam came out of the mad scientist's mouth as the human equivalent of calming himself down. Now feeling more calm, the doctor then spoke again.

"Fine! I'll give you another chance. After all, those Shipgirls' ancient weaponry is no match for my U-555 Mk. II." stated the doctor as he began walking past him.

"But I hope you won't fail me this time, otherwise you and your troops are as good as guinea pigs for my research. Now, leave me alone! I still have other research to do!"

And so, the scientist left the lab, leaving the shark Maverick alone. He couldn't help but snort at the doctor's 'holier than thou' attitude towards him and his soldiers.

"Heh, guinea pigs... It looks like he forgot who brought him back in the first place." He sneered, also walking towards the door where the mad doctor had left through.

"Had I not made a backup of my IC and this body, you would have been nothing but a pile of molten scraps as well..."

* * *

 **And that wraps the 5th chapter of Abyssal Hunter X. So do you have any idea who the two villains in the end are?**

 **And I already said this before but I'll say it again. Before I move on White Devil of SEED, I'll expand some chapters and alter some things I feel unsatisfied with. I apologize if I sounded like inconsistent, but I prefer this way rather than posting a new story.**

 **Until next time, readers.  
**


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